First Love
by LouEthelip
Summary: COMPLETED1st Draft Mina is reintroduced to her first love. Please read and Review Based on 4 Sister segment of Sailor Moon
1. The Laff Factory

Authors Notes:  
Hi,  
Before getting to the story, I would like to take a few moments to explain why this story was written. Like you, I am a fan of Sailor Moon and enjoy the show. I also enjoy reading fanfics. Well of all the stories on the show in North America and the fanfics there has always been one topic that has never been broached. Why Mina or her Japanese name Minako has never had a boyfriend on the show or even had one mentioned in her past. Of course, Serena has Darien, Rei has a relationship of sorts with Chad, Ami and Greg looked to be serious, and finally Lita has Ken who she does not call a boyfriend but is obviously close to (when she is not chasing after some guy who reminds her of an old boyfriend). This leaves Mina who in my opinion is the most charming, naturally beautiful and endearing of all the scouts. Now you fans of the other scouts this is not meant as a slam against your favorite this is simply my own personal opinion. So this leaves the following question unanswered, why has Mina never had a boyfriend? She seems interested in guys especially Tuxedo Mask and The Moonlight Knight so it is obvious she likes guys. So why hasn't she ever had a boyfriend? It is in this vein that I write this story. I hope you enjoy it.

First Love

By

Louis J. Gagliano

Chapter 1: The Laff Factory

When there weren't enemies that needed to be defeated, it was always a pleasurable experience when the Sailor Scouts would get together. They always enjoyed each other's company not withstanding the occasional fights Serena and Rei would eventually get into. Eventually calmer heads would prevail and everything would be well again. They're individual talents made them a formidable force but their greatest advantage was their friendship.

In the kitchen of her apartment, Lita stood before the pots, pans, and various food items like a samurai warrior in the middle of battle. Reattaching the headband with a sun in the middle of the cloth on her forehead added to the effect while in her baking apron covering the green long sleeved shirt she wore. Chopping vegetables, stirring the pots, tenderizing meats, going to the refrigerator to pull out the food she had prepared earlier for Luna and Artemis so it would still be fresh but not too cold for their taste buds. Stirring one of the pots, again Lita reached out for a small saucer that was barely dipped in a sauce. Bringing it up to her lips she let her educated taste buds go to work. She let the sauce swirl around her tongue before letting it enter her throat. She was not satisfied with its quality and knew what was needed. Going to her spice cabinet, she pulled out a small jar of basil adding two tablespoons and stirred in.

Lita was as proud of her ability to cook as she was thrashing negamonsters and even though the people she was having over tonight were not known as fussy eaters, especially Serena, it did not matter. She wanted to give them a meal fit for a king or in their cases princesses.

The doorbell rang to break Lita's concentration. After stirring a little more she put a lid on the sauce and lowered the temperature. She wiped her hands on her apron before grabbing the doorknob to answer the door. She was surprised to see the diminutive Ami at the door

"Ami, I thought you'd still be at computer class.", Lita commented as she allowed the brains of the Sailor Scouts inside.

"Well I would have but there was a blackout at the school this evening. After a while, the teacher decided to simply let us out for the evening. I hope my coming over early isn't a problem.," explained Ami in her high-pitched voice.

"No problem at all. Make yourself comfortable." Lita assured her.

Ami took in a deep whiff letting the aroma of Lita's cooking wash over her. She licked her lips in anticipation of the meal knowing it would be as wondrous to the palate as it was to the nose. Smiling with satisfaction Lita made her way back to her cooking while Ami sat down to break open one of her study books.

"This sleep over idea of yours was a brilliant idea. I've been getting so excited about it that I had a great deal of difficulty concentrating on my history test today."

Lita kept her head down trying to stifle a laugh. Everybody knew how brilliant Ami was and the very idea of her getting an answer incorrect was almost inconceivable. The girl behind the pots knew that Ami's took her schoolwork very seriously. Every test Ami ever took always seemed to end with a perfect score that was the result of her hard work. It was also why the thought of getting even one answer incorrect bothered her so much.

She decided to let the subject of school drop for the moment, preferring to discuss the business at hand.

"It'll be great. A good meal by yours truly. An all night gossip session. Tomorrow some mall trolling.",Lita contemplated in anticipation.

"Well let's not let our guard down for a second. After all that new threat from the negaverse might show up. We still need to be ready to drop what we're doing if they show up.", Ami fussed.

"They do anything to spoil this weekend and I'll give them something to be sorry for.", muttered Lita to herself even if she knew that Ami was right.

"Don't get too involved in that book Ami. I expect everybody to be here on time tonight." Lita warned.

"Everybody? Even Serena?" ,Ami asked in surprise.

"Uh huh." ,Lita nodded .

"How in the world are you going to pull off that miracle? Being on time is not one of Serena's strong points. ",Ami quizzed.

"Perhaps not normally but let's just say I made her an offer she couldn't refuse." ,Lita smirked with a slightly devilish grin.

The streets starting to turn a golden dusk orange as Serena ran down the street. Her backpack bouncing between the shoulder blades of her pink sweater with each step. Each breath came out quick and labored, her legs were getting weary from the sprint she had put herself through since she left the house. Beside the girl her faithful companion Luna struggled to keep up with her. At one time Luna would have easily outrun the blonde pigtailed girl but as the sailor scout training took their effect Serena's speed and endurance had increased.

"Slow down Serena." ,implored Luna.

"I can't. Lita said if I wasn't there by 6:30 they'd start dinner without me and I'm already late." ,huffed Serena.

In her mad dash Serena turned around the corner around the large building without slowing down, not knowing that there was somebody on the other side. Serena tried to stop her momentum when she saw the eyes of another person who was getting off the bus grow in size in proportion to the mouth gapping open but the speed she had built up was too great. In spite of all efforts Serena crashed into the figure. Luna nearly crashed into the person as well but was able to check her velocity. Serena got up quickly and began bowing wildly.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry." ,she repeated over and over as she bowed repeatedly, not able to look into the persons eyes.

"Serena. I think the mailbox accepts your apology?" ,came a familiar but still pained voice.

Serena stopped bowing long enough to open up her eyes and looked up to see that she had been indeed bowing in front of a blue mailbox. Remorse turned into embarrassment and then mortification as she got a good look at the women she had really knocked down. Even though her back was towards Serena as she tried to get up, the familiar long blonde hair tied in the back with a big red bow gave her identity away as well as the sound of her voice. Even from the rear if there had been any doubt as to the identity of her unintended prey it would be confirmed by the white cat near her body. Coming to her side Serena helped her friend up.

"Oh Mina, I'm so sorry. Please forgive me."

Mina looked into the sad eyes of her friend, there was no doubt of the sincerity of the apology for while Serena was many things, vicious or cruel was not among them. She smiled tenderly in the manner that showed there was no ill feelings towards her friend as she wiped off some of the dirt that had gotten on her blue jeans and pink blouse attire she was wearing.

"It's all right, don't worry about it." ,Mina assured her," So why were you running so fast?"

"Lita said...",Serena stopped for a moment as she realized something. Reaching out to grab Mina by the arm she panicked, "Oh no we're going to be really late for dinner now!"

Too stunned at first from being pulled along at a breakneck speed that nearly caused her to lose her balance Mina couldn't react. When her wits returned she began to pull back in an attempt to stop before Serena pulled off yet another calamity.

"Slow down. We've got plenty of time. Dinner isn't until 7.",informed Mina.

"I know and it's...",Serena stopped her sentence short when she realized that Mina thought dinner was later. Letting go of her arm Serena turned around and queried," 7? I was told it was 6:30."

Mina reached into her handbag for the scout transmitter. To most people it was a simple calculator capable of adding, subtracting, multiplying, dividing, and several other calculations but for the Sailor Scouts it had the capacity of voice and visual message transmission Looking around to make sure nobody could eavesdrop on their conversation Mina pressed the activation button. At the upper right of the calculator/communicator video waves weaves back and forth.

"Lita, this is Mina come in please." ,speaking in a hushed tone.

A few seconds passed before the image of Lita appeared in the window.

"This is Lita. Go ahead."

"I seem to be a little confused at what time dinner is tonight. When was I suppose to be there?"

"Seven. Is there something wrong?"

Serena moved her face in front of Mina's to answer that question.

"Only that a certain somebody told me to be there at 6:30 and that if I didn't you'd start dinner without me that's all."

Seeing Serena's angry look, Lita tried to figure out a way to extract herself from the situation gracefully.

"Well Serena... I mean...Well it's like this..."

Not believing what she was hearing Luna shook her head at Artemis lamenting, "If only Serena had the same passion when it came to being a Sailor Scout.".

A taxi cab was making it's way through the evening rush hour traffic. It's driver trying to get the passenger to his destination. Looking briefly in his rear view mirror above the dashboard the driver looked yet again at his fare who sat quietly in the back seat looking out of the side of the cab. At first glance he was amazed by how young he looked. The lad didn't look old enough to be able to produce one whisker. His baseball cap and jacket made him look like he was still in college. A traveler on vacation, an easy target for a cab driver to make a few extra bucks by taking the long way to where he wanted to go. The cab driver lost count of how many fare's he had taken advantage of in this manner. It didn't take long though for the driver to realize that the youth talked with the authority of an experienced traveler who wouldn't be easily conned by the drivers subterfuge. The patron wouldn't even participate in the usual banter the driver had honed over the years to distract the passenger from seeing his deceit. The passenger looked down at his watch, not the first time he'd done that the cabby thought.

"Is that the station?" ,the passenger asked pointing to an extremely tall building with some satellite dishes visible on the rooftop.

"Yes sir. We should be a kilometer or two away from it. You'll be there soon."

As the cab neared the building it pulled over to the curb. The passenger went into his blue jeans for the money to pay the fare plus a considerable tip. It wound up being a much more profitable trip than he would had made with the scam. The passenger got out of the vehicle, and waited. The driver got out of the vehicle to get the passenger's luggage from the trunk. A garment bag with a hook ready to hang up and a traditional piece of travel luggage. The passenger gave a hearty thanks to the driver before grabbing his travel gear to head inside. The driver looked at his passenger one more time. There was something about him that looked familiar but couldn't figure out what. The driver got back into his cab when it struck him who that passenger was.

The young man took the elevator up. He stood among the men and women who came on and off the lift. Among the high priced suits and dresses of the others he looked woefully out of place. If his looking like a comparative vagrant bothered him though it didn't show. He put up with their stares in silence. When the last person got off he was still several stories away from his destination. At the top floor he exited, making his way down the long hallway to the only door on the floor.

On the door was the logo of KJPN one of the television stations of Tokyo. He opened it and walked into the plush office making his way towards the receptionist sitting behind her desk. Because she was in the middle of typing a letter that had been dictated by tape earlier, her headphones prevented her from noticing the presence of the young man. He was willing to wait until she notice him. It gave him the chance to put down his items and look around. Great works of art were on every wall, the seating area looked to be of leather. A rug so plush that his sneakers nearly disappeared beneath it. The business would appear to be doing quite well to afford such a lavish room. It was elegant and done in good taste.

He looked again at the secretary who in his mind was equally elegant and dressed in good taste. Dark hair done up in a bun, the one eye he could see in profile was brown. The dress was a simple white blouse with what appeared to be a dark skirt. An equally dark blouse jacket hung on the back of her chair. From the look of her small hands typing away he guessed that height wise she was on the petite side. The receptionist noticed his presence finally and took off her headphones.

"Yes, can I help you?" ,she asked.

The young man removed his hat and sunglasses to reveal his short brown hair and blue eyes. He nodded to the secretary and replied

"Hi. I'm Shawn Foley. I believe I am expected.".

The secretary's eye's opened wide. Getting up from her chair her embarrassment was obvious as she tried to make up for her lack of speed in greeting him earlier.

"Oh I'm sorry. I didn't recognize...Of course you are expected Mr. Foley."

As the secretary reached for the telephone Shawn gave her a kind smile trying silently to assure her that he took no offense to the perceived faux pas. She pressed down some buttons and waited.

"Mr. K., Mr. Foley is here to see you." ,she announced. A few seconds passed before she spoke again, "Yes sir."

The receptionist hung up the phone then looked up to the young man. She pointed to the door behind her informing him, "Mr. K will see you now."

The young man picked up his items. Part way to the door the secretary asked, "I hope you're not angry with me for not recognizing you right away."

"I'll think about it." ,Shawn teased pretending to look like his pride was injured. He looked straight into her eyes while flashing a smile and a wink. Part devilish, part mischievous, indicating the decision was already made and that she had nothing to worry about.

She smiled back thankful for his understanding nature. She had heard that Shawn wasn't like many of his peers but until that moment she wasn't sure if that was true or just hearsay. He was a refreshing change of pace from the normal clientele that normally came through the door. A bit of a flirter with the ladies to be sure but did so with respect.

Shawn entered the door he was instructed to go through. He expected the new room to be even more glamorous than the waiting area but was disappointed to see that this office was designed for practicality as opposed to any esthetic value. A man sitting down put down some papers he had been looking at on the small end table, got up from his chair as Shawn entered to shake his hand.

"Mr. Foley, nice of you to come by.", The man said.

"A pleasure Mr. Kowhj... Kow...",Shawn struggled trying to properly pronounce the man's real name.

"Just call me K., everybody else does. My own countryman have trouble saying the name right so don't feel bad if you can't. I wish you would have told us you had arrived at the airport. I would have gladly sent one of the members of my staff to pick you up." ,Mr. K said.

"It worked out much better this way. I didn't attract attention and got here with plenty of time to spare. I could use a favor though. After the show I've got to catch the flight back to Honolulu. I'll be cutting it kind of close as it is. Could you make sure a cab would be waiting when we are done tonight?" ,Shawn asked.

"I'll do better than that." ,Mr. K assured him as he moved to the phone. Pressing the button down he called, "Nikki. Mr. Foley has to catch a flight after the show. Make the special transportation arrangements to Tokyo International." ,he commanded.

Shawn waited for his host to hang up the phone so they can get to his real purpose for being in Tokyo.

"So have you seen the building yet?" ,Shawn wanted to know.

"Yes, they just completed the construction two weeks ago. The only thing they haven't gotten to yet is the blessing. We've been waiting for your arrival on that. Since you won't be in town for very long today we'll just wait for when you and the others return from America next week. I want to get as much publicity as possible by having you there." ,Mr. K supplied.

" You'll get no argument from me. I want to open the factory to a full house if at all possible. At least with your company sponsoring the first three years, the factory be able to eliminate any financial difficulty before it can get itself established." ,Shawn concurred.

"It simply made good business sense to do so. We sponsor The Laff Factory for 3 years, plug the appearances so people will come to see them and as new talent gets noticed we'll have first rights to them appearing on my show. Speaking of the show you don't plan on going on like that do you?" ,Mr. K asked.

Shawn pointed down to the garment bag, "I've got a change of clothes with me. After the last show there was only enough time left to shower so I wouldn't have a smell that would offend skunks while the others got what I needed for the show tonight from the hotel."

Mr. K nodded his head understanding before suggesting, "Well you certainly must be hungry after such a long flight. Airline food never does seem to fill the bill does it. I suggest you get some dinner before going through makeup and wardrobe. There is a lovely restaurant down the block from here."

"You'll get no arguments from me." ,smiled Shawn.

"You lied to me Lita! How could you do such a thing!" ,demanded Serena who was still upset and wasn't satisfied with the explanation Lita gave of," I needed you here on time and thought it was the best way to do it."

"And you are on time for a change. I'll have to remember that the next time we need you at the temple." ,Rei chirped in obnoxiously

Lita gave a hard look to Rei, she wasn't helping matters at all. While she had expected a little heat for her deception Lita wasn't ready for the verbal barrage Serena was putting on her. Normally her significant height advantage over the other scouts, not to mention her amazon features was enough to make them think twice before confronting her even if she had been wrong. Rei's smile quickly disappeared deciding to simply become a spectator again.

"Well what do you have to say for yourself?" ,Serena directed.

"You're right." ,Lita finally conceded, feeling a little ashamed of herself.

In her rage Serena almost didn't realized that Lita had agreed with her assessment of the situation given that the mahogany haired spitfire was not known for giving up so easily from a fight, physical or verbal. Mouth wide open about to spit her venom further the blonde girl stopped, recognizing that she had won. Her eye's popped wide open as her mouth shut indicating her stunned reaction.

"I am?" ,Serena prompted.

"I should have been honest with you from the start about dinner, the sleep over and everything. After all we're suppose to be able to trust each other all the time right? If we can't trust each other with something like this how can we trust each other when we're fighting as the Sailor Scouts and..."

The others watched while Lita struggled to come up with the proper apology that was turning into a speech. Admitting that she made a mistake was not one of her strong points and trying to make amends for them was an even weaker skill.

Ami who had been laying on the sofa trying to stay out of the fight decided now was the time to intervene. She closed the study book resting against her updrawn knees and suggested, "If you're trying to apologize why not simply say 'I'm sorry Serena, please forgive me.' "

From the kitchen Lita heard Ami's proposal and like any other answer she had given in the past it was usually the correct one. She took a deep breath, looking Serena straight in the eye to hopefully erase any possible doubt of sincerity and said it.

"Serena, I'm sorry. Please forgive me."

Serena was too stunned by the turn of events to say anything which Lita interpreted as a lack of acceptance. Turning to a nearby cupboard Lita opened it to remove one of her homemade muffins. She offered it to Serena as a peace offering.

"Please Serena I don't want this weekend to start off on a wrong foot." ,she implored.

Serena accepted the muffin from her friends hands but tried to look as if she was angrier than she really was.

"Oh...I guess I can forgive you." ,letting a smile of satisfaction cross her lips.

Glad that the fight was over Lita moved back to the final preparations for the nights dinner while Serena moved over to the couch next to Mina holding an icepack against the bruise on her left hip from the incident. Splitting the muffin in half she offered a share to her blonde friend.

"Here. You deserve this as much as I do." ,Serena stated.

Eating the muffin Mina thought to herself that this was almost worth the pain of getting wiped out by Serena.

Rubeus looked intently at the blueprint of the future Crystal Tokyo from the 24th century. Next to it was a citywide map of the Tokyo of the present. Still feeling the sting from the latest defeat at the hands of the Sailor Scouts he endeavored to find another crystal point in the future and cross reference the current map to determine it's location in this era.

"Rubeus!" ,a deep ghostly voice called out.

He turned around to see the apparition. It's two glowing eyes staring at him. As usual there was no expression from the figure which under normal circumstances would make it difficult to determine the reason for the visit but with the visit coming so soon after their most recent loss this was definitely not a social call.

"Wiseman...",Rubeus started to say.

"You have disappointed me again! Don't give me any more of the excuses you've continually provided me. If we are to change the outcome of the future was with Crystal Tokyo, the past must be changed. You have not helped matters with the continual loses by you and the four sisters. You have captured no crystal points, nor the 'rabbit'."

"It's those accursed Sailor Scouts. They are as bothersome in this time as they've been in yours." ,Rubeus stated in his defense.

"I said no more of your excuses!" ,the Wiseman bellowed.

Rubeus was taken aback from the force of his statement realizing that silent submissive servitude was called for in this instance.

"I've got a special mission for you and the sisters. This is more than just the simple conquering of a crystal point. This will devastate the morale of the citizens of Crystal Tokyo changing the tide of our battles. I'm sending you the information now."

Rubeus looked at the data the wiseman sent. Computing the information to his current map coming up and comparing it to the map of the Tokyo of the present he scrutinized the facts.

"The Laff Factory?" ,he quizzed.

"Yes. It is a place where people go to be entertained. To laugh. A place that will keep the spirits of those who go there high and happy. In our time even during the heaviest attacks it stands there keeping the populace from understanding the futility of resisting the Dark Moon. Destroy it in the past and it will not be a part of our future. I want the Laff Factory filled with negaenergy then burned."

Another image began to overlay on the map. The picture of a young man.

"And who is this?" ,asked Rubeus.

"His name is Shawn Foley. He is responsible for bringing The Laff Factory into Tokyo. A fool who seems to feel that laughter can overcome anything. He is called by some "The Prince of Comedy."

"And what do you want us to do with him?"

A big red "X" scrolled down across the facial image.

"Kill him."

Serena put the last bite of the pie on her plate in her mouth. Her tastebuds still relishing the confectionery talents of her amazon friend.

"Oh Lita. That was the best dinner I've ever had." ,she complimented

"I started getting that feeling you thought that. After all you only had three helpings of pie and seconds on dinner. You keep this up and you won't be able to fit into your uniform." ,teased Lita.

Serena put her head down and blushed in embarrassment as her friends started laughing. She knew that the giggles were not meant in a mean way but it still flustered her.

Lita got up from her chair to start cleaning up the table. She put a few plates on top of each other before taking them into the kitchen. The others took her lead and started bringing in glasses, forks, knives, and so forth. Each item was placed into the dishwasher.

"So Lita, what's new in your life?" ,asked Mina who because she went to a different school from Lita, as well as Serena and Ami, didn't always have a chance to catch up on the gossip of the day.

"Well I did meet this boy yesterday and...",she started to say

"and he reminds you of your old boyfriend.", the rest of the group quickly chimed in having heard the phrase from her time and time again. They all laughed.

"I just wish we could have met that old boyfriend you are always talking about so we can see what it is about him that has you seeing other hunks and seeing him in them. He must have really been something." ,stated Rei.

"Actually he was something." ,Lita confirmed before muttering under her breath," Even if he was a big jerk when he dumped me."

Once the topic of boys was brought up it was all that the girls would talk about. Serena discussed how was still as upset as she was befuddled by the actions of Darien. She still could not understand why he kept saying he didn't love her anymore yet whenever she was in the slightest danger he would come to the rescue. Rei talked about the love/hate relationship she was having with Chad. That the ex rock and roll drummer was a hunk but how he did two things that constantly irritated her. The fact the he didn't know when she was playing hard to get which he interpreted as a refusal but even that was minor to the times when he would sing. She wished there was a way she could bottle the sound that comes out of his mouth. It would drive away any evil spirit within 100 meters. Lita talked about the new guy she met but also talked quite a bit about Ken too.

Ami shared some good news with the group. She had gotten an E-Mail from Greg that he was coming back to Tokyo with his parents next weekend. The young man who she had fallen in love with a while back had continued to keep communicating with her to the best of his ability, but with the constant moving around dictated by his fathers business sometimes put a strain on the relationship.

"So Ami have you let him kiss you yet?" ,boldly asked Rei.

She knew the question would make Ami blush and the smallest member of the scouts did not disappoint her. The crimson on her cheeks showed the degree of embarrassment she was feeling. That didn't stop Rei from making her even more embarrassed.

"I take that as a yes. So how good a kisser is he? What does he do?" ,she continued to heckle.

Rei noticed that there was a lack of laughter suddenly at her jokes. Looking around she noticed that the other scouts looked at her offended. They were letting her know without saying a word that she was going too far . Rei began to feel quite uncomfortable with all the attention she was getting and decided it was best to change the subject. She cleared her throat before speaking.

"So Mina, how is everything on the boyfriend front for you?" ,she quickly said then stayed quiet.

The girl with the big red bow just shrugged her shoulders.

"Same as usual, same as usual."

"You know Mina its a shame that you don't have a guy of your own. I mean look at you. You should have guys chasing after you left and right." ,observed Lita.

"Oh some have tried to chase but I wouldn't let them catch me. I just...they just wasn't what I wanted." ,Mina confessed.

"Oh!" ,said the girls collectively in surprise. While Mina was always kind, gentle, and supportive, she didn't talk about herself much.

"So what would your dream guy be like?" ,pressed Lita not wanting to let the window of opportunity pass to learn more about her golden haired friend.

Mina looked for a moment like she didn't want to answer the question. While always willing to hear what others had to say she didn't feel quite as comfortable talking about herself. Even now in the presence of her closest friends she was hesitant to talk of her wants and desires. She put her best face forward and answered.

"Well...First of all he'd be somebody I can talk to comfortably. He'd make me feel warm and at ease when we're together. That he'd like a lot of the things I do. He'd be understanding since there would be times we couldn't be together because of scout business. Of course being a hunk certainly wouldn't hurt, but above all else he'd have to be able to make me laugh."

As she was describing her dream guy she was unconscious of the fact that her arms started to cross across her chest. Her hands started to caress the upper arms up and down. The eyes while looking in the direction of the other scouts were not registering their presence. Her lips turned upward in a sparkling smile while her mind was deep in thought dreaming of such an individual.

"Looks like you have somebody in mind there Mina." ,noted Lita.

"Not really." ,she responded," It just a dream that I've often had of how he would look, and behave. Who knows maybe someday I'll run into him."

"Well I hope so Mina. You deserve a guy who is nothing less than great." ,offered Serena in support.

"I'm willing to wait." ,Mina spoke optimistically.

Rubeus paced back and forth in the stealth aircraft that hovered over the Tokyo of the present. With each step his anger continued to grow, seething with each stride. He arrived expecting the four sisters to be there and their disappearance made an already rabid Rubeus even angrier.

Prizma was the first to come through the teleportation mirror carrying a small bag of items, Avery followed with a smaller bag. Catsy and Birdy concluded. They noticed their leader's presence.

"Rubeus!" ,they all happily exclaimed as one.

Their boss kept his back towards them to keep his temper in check.

"So where have you been? As if I didn't know."

"Well you know a girl needs a few things from time to time. Lipstick, mascara. After all a girl has to look her best at all times." ,Prizma explained.

"But we didn't forget about you. We found something you are just going to love." ,added Catsy.

Reaching into her bag Catsy pulled out a small box which had been wrapped and bowed. Presenting it to Rubeus the girls noticed for the first time his angry mood. He snatched the box from Catsy not so gently and ripped off the bow then the wrapping. Opening the box he pulled out a rounded crystal with impressions within it. As he held it towards the light Rubeus recognized it as the moon. He turned the crystal until he could see the area where the Dark Moon Kingdom was, in a place where human beings had never discovered.

"We saw it and thought it would be something you'd like." ,offered Birdy as a means of explaining the gift.

Rubeus walked away from the girls holding the gift in his hands while the girls began to breath a collective sigh of relief that they had appeased his anger.

Relief turned to surprise as Rubeus whirled around and threw the crystal at Catsy's head. The sphere missed by only the narrowest of margins when she ducked the throw. The crystal impacted itself against the wall shattering into many pieces. The ladies were stunned and unable to respond as their leader began to bellow. He pointed to the now demolished orb.

"You see that! That is what is happening to the dark kingdom right now. It is being destroyed piece by piece and what are you doing about it? You're shopping! You want to get me a gift? Then get me either the silver imperial crystal, get me a crystal point or get me that blasted 'rabbit'!"

He had the full attention of his subordinates who didn't dare move, or attempt to defend what happened.

"I just got a little visit from Wiseman. To say he has been displeased with us is putting it mildly and I can not blame him. The wiseman has been patient with us but that patience isn't infinite. He is at the end of his composure and so am I. You either start getting your act together or pretty soon the 4 sisters will be no more."

Rubeus looked at the foursome. Their silence spoke volumes. He had their attention totally and he was determined to make sure he kept it. He lowered the volume of his rage several notches as he continued.

"Now, you have another chance to do this right. The wiseman has sent us a very special mission. Now lets get it right."

Rubeus began to describe the mission exactly as the wiseman had given it to him. He made sure that there was no misunderstanding what had to be done. The fact that the ladies asked him many questions gave him a good feeling about the success of this mission. Rubeus finished the meeting by showing a clip of Shawn Foley from the same time frame they were in so the ladies could recognize him on sight.

The area was referred to as the "green room". It was the place where people sat and waited until such time as they were called to come on the show. Shawn Foley looked with amusement noting that of all the green rooms he had been in this was the first time in his memory that it was painted green. He sat alone in the room watching the television set where the talk show was in progress.

The door of the room opened up where a young lady popped her head in.

"Five minutes, Mr. Foley." ,she announced.

Nodding his head, he stood up and grabbed the cup of water from the end table and a bag that was next to him. The pair walked silently through the backstage area until they were behind the curtain to the stage. The sounds of the show still in progress could be heard.

Trying to keep quiet Shawn began to pace nervously back and forth. The women noticed the serious expression on his face. Head bent down, eyes focused on the floor as he took 5 steps in one direction then 5 coming back, hands shaking around trying to keep them loose. He took a deep breath then threw his head from side to side.

"Are you all right? Is there something I can do for you?" ,his escort inquired with a whisper.

"No, but thanks. Just getting ready." ,he explained.

The women continued to watch as pacing turned into a semi-jog, followed by running in place at the fastest speed he was capable of. Putting one leg on the table he leaned forward stretching the hamstring so a muscle won't get pulled, then doing the same with the other limb. Small amounts of sweat started forming on his forehead when he finally stopped. His eyes had a focused look similar to a boxer before a fight.

From the other side of the curtain music was heard playing then a voice yelling, "Clear!"

The women wiped the sweat off his brow and touched up the area with makeup so as to prevent his forehead from coming across shiny with the hot lights when the camera started transporting the signal to the airwaves. A small microphone was picked up nearby and the women started to attach it to the side of his shirt collar when he pulled back.

"Wait a minute. I almost forgot something."

The women started to get a little nervous. The break would only last a minute and she had to make sure to get the microphone in place or else his voice would not get picked up. She looked on as the man pulled a black T-shirt out of the bag and started to put it on being very careful not to smear any of the makeup that had been put on. The women quickly attacked the microphone to the T-shirt.

"We need a sound check Mr. Foley." ,she asked as she signaled the technician in charge of the sound.

"O. K. here I go. I have come here to chew bubble gum and kick butt, and I'm all out of bubble gum."

"30 seconds!" ,yelled a voice from the outside of the curtain.

"I hear 30. Do I hear 35? 35, 35, 35, 35. Yes we've got 35. Going for 40. Do I hear 40, 40, 40. 35 going once, 35 going twice. Sold to the gentleman in the yellow hat for 35." , Shawn spoke doing a an impersonating an auctioneer. until given the thumbs up from the technician.

"We've got good sound here." ,the man said.

While trying to stifle her giggling the women gave a final spot check to Shawn pulling a few pieces of lint from the shoulder of his T-shirt. Even though it was so small it was doubtful they would be seen by the camera the women was paid to made sure all the guests on the show looked his best.

"All right. Now when we pull the curtain back the stage will be three steps to your right and the platform will be there. Be careful to step up when you get to the platform or you may fall. The other guests will have been moved over to the other seats so that you'll be sitting next to 'K' for your interview. ",the women instructed.

"Now this will be live right?" ,Shawn inquired.

"Right so if something goes wrong we can't yell cut and start over. Just keep going. If there's a problem follow 'K's lead. He'll know how to handle it.

"10 seconds."

"And will this be going out live to all of Japan?"

"Yes."

Shawn waited just behind where the curtain would open up. Kicking his left leg forward slightly then the right. His arms being shaken to keep himself loose and his energy level high.

"Break a leg Mr. Foley." ,the women encouraged.

Shawn put out his left hand in a fist. The women put her right hand in a fist and tapped the offered grip over the top. Shawn replied in kind as the women knew from her experience that this was considered a form of good luck by certain superstitious performers. As the man from the other side of the curtain counted down from 5, Shawn was ready to make an impression on the people of Tokyo.

The Sailor Scouts were watching the television set tuned to " 'K' Hour." Their gossip session caused them to miss the first part of the hosts monologue but they didn't miss the interview with a sumo wrestler who had won a tournament, followed by a skit, and then a singer who was releasing her new CD. As the show came out of commercial 'K' sat behind his desk.

"Well its been pretty wild here tonight and something tells me that things are about to get a lot wilder when we bring our next guest out. He comes to us from The United States via England and is considered one of the hottest young comics in the world today. He has already been dubbed the prince of comedy, and will be appearing at the grand opening of the Tokyo branch of The Laff Factory. Ladies and Gentleman here is Shawn "The Flake" Foley!"

The curtains pulled back and Shawn raced out with a shopping bag hugged in his left arm like a football. The crowd was surprised by the T-shirt he was wearing. It was a shirt to promote the opening of The Laff Factory. On the otherwise solid black shirt there was the design of a cream colored factory with white smoke billowing from the smokestacks where they would eventually form into the Greek mask of comedy. Dropping the bag he began pumping his arms showing how excited he was to be there and the audience responded wildly. He grabbed the bag and started running into the seated crowd. A portable camera followed him as he found an empty seat in the gallery where he promptly sat next to a women who was caught off guard by his actions. She laughed though was a little embarrassed as he put his arm around her and started pointing to the stage pretending he was just part of the audience and her date. Shawn noticed the women's chagrin so he let her off the hook quickly by pulled out an identical T-shirt from the bag, handing it to her and whispering something to her that only she would ever hear. He snatch the bag again and made his way back down to the main floor where he threw 3 more shirts into the audience who grabbed them. Finally he ran full speed to the main interview area where the guests and the host were laughing at his bold actions. A bow to the audience, a wave, and Shawn sat down to the ovation of the crowd.

At Lita's house the other scouts laughed just as wildly with Serena's hyena laugh the loudest of all. Even the normally formal Luna found amusement in the antics of this brazen individual. Artemis however went to Mina who wasn't joining in the laughter. He saw her freeze up the moment the gentleman's name was mentioned. Sitting farther away from any of the other scouts her actions were not noticed by the others but Artemis knew there would be some reaction from the lady who he was the guardian of and most likely it wouldn't be the one the other scouts had.

Mina picked up Artemis and started petting him. He purred trying to help her as the other girls continued to watch.

"First of all Shawn, I can't tell you how thrilled I am to have you on our show tonight. Words just can't express the gratitude I feel towards your being here and I don't know what I could do to make your being here more pleasurable."

"Well a little money wouldn't hurt." ,Shawn humorously deadpanned.

The audience responded positively to the humor as the host tried to bring the show back on track.

"So have you been enjoying yourself here?"

"Oh I've been having a great time in...",Shawn stopped.

He rolled his eyes upward as if trying to remember something, then went into the back pocket of his slacks for a piece of paper which he pulled out and unfolded. He peeked at the paper.

"Tokyo." ,he finished.

The crowd again laughed, which made the young superstar bolder in his approach. For the next ten minutes Shawn delighted the audience with his brand of humor. Sometimes irreverent, often bizarre, with answers that made little sense but were done with an attitude that brought the crowd enjoyment. Every question posed to him by the host was greeted with an offbeat answer which led to more laughter from the throng. Eventually the host finally gave up trying to keep the discussion serious when he realized that the audience was enjoying the insanity and babbling so he let Shawn take the questions on whichever tangent he decided to take it. Only at the last possible moment when the host brought the levity down to earth.

"I could talk with you all night long but we have to stop for a moment for a commercial. We will be back in a moment to continue with Shawn "The Flake" Foley.

"Well let them go to commercial and you and we'll just keep on talking here.", Shawn suggested.

All the guests sat forward so the camera could see them all but the camera began to push forward to begin getting a close up of the host. The crowd and those at home saw Shawn with his hands on his lap suddenly lift his right wrist up and crook his pinkie finger up and down appearing as if it was a mini wave.

Back at Lita's place, Mina's eyes were starting to water and her breathing ragged as her emotional buttons were being pushed. She couldn't show this in front of the others though. Letting go of Artemis she got up, making her way to the bathroom and closed the door gently. There alone in the room she began to let her feelings express themselves in tears overflowing her eyelids and going down her cheeks. Slowly at first then the emotional dam cracked, then shattered.

"Mina?" ,came the soft gentlemanly voice of Artemis.

It took her a moment to realize that there was a second presence in the room. She saw her guardian jump up from the floor to the sink counter. He looked at her with concern in his eyes and not just because she was a sailor scout. They were more than owner and pet, even more than friends. They had a bond that nobody else could understand. He knew more about the young blonde girl than anybody including things that she would rather not remember.

"No Artemis, I don't want to talk about it."

"You may not have much of a choice much longer. He's coming here and obviously you still haven't dealt with what happened the last time. You have to talk about it."

"No...",she stubbornly insisted,"...and don't you dare tell the others. Remember you promised that you'd never tell."

Artemis stood there feeling like an idiot. How could he have known when he made that promise in England that their paths would ever cross again. She looked at herself in the mirror and saw that the crying had made her eyes redden so she turned on some cold waters and splashed her face with it.

"He used the signal. How could he do such a thing." ,she muttered to herself as she dried her face with a towel.

"So what are you going to do about this?" ,Artemis quizzed.

The young women stared into the mirror but the white tabby wondered if she was really seeing anything at that moment.

"Nothing." ,she answered then paused for a moment before continuing, "Lets get real here. He's a star now. He's going to be so busy with what he's doing I'll bet that we never meet. The odds of us meeting are so remote I bet not even Ami could compute it. Besides I'll bet he's forgotten all about me. He's probably even forgotten what that signal he gave meant."

Sitting there he knew that certain aspects of what the young girl had said was true but the last sentence shocked him. He also realized that this was not to time to dredge up the past, especially with the other scouts just outside the door in the other room. This called for timing and tact. Characteristics that were not Artemis's strong suit but he would try his best for her sake.

Lita announced that the commercial was almost over and that the show would begin soon. Mina snatched a tissue from nearby and blew her nose to finish her preparations for being seen by the others again.

As she came out the show had come out of commercial. 'K' was getting last minute comments from his guests from the show before thanking the audience and saying good night before the show finished for the night.

"Oh that Shawn Foley is just wicked cool." ,praised Serena.

"And so quick, he must be really smart to be able to come up with all those witty remarks right off the top of his head." added Ami.

"What a hunk." ,admitted Rei.

"He was something else, wasn't he Mina?" ,asked Lita

For a moment Mina was trying to clear her throat to hide her emotions. Trying to pass the comment off as casual she said, "Yeah he's something else."

"Cut and Clear! That's a wrap folks. Great show tonight." ,came a voice from over the speakers of the stage.

Shawn quickly took off his mini microphone and placed it on the table where it was quickly scooped up. His face only moments ago at ease was now showing pressure and stress. Shaking the hands quickly of the other guests and a few well wishers on the crew he turned to his host for the evening and shook his hand as well.

"Thanks for tonight. Had a great time. Wish I could stay but I've got about half an hour to catch my flight." ,he hastily spoke.

"Relax, everything has been taken care of. Your valise is already checked on and we've got a helicopter on the roof fueled and ready to take you to the airport."

The women who had brought him from the dressing room to the stage walked up to gently grasp him by the arm.

"This way sir." ,she asked.

The pair walked to an exit and made their way up the stairs to the roof where the helicopter was waiting and running . At the top step the women handed Shawn a clipboard.

"We need you to sign a couple of forms before you go. They are the travel vouchers for the helicopter. Please sign here, here and here."

Shawn did as instructed on the forms. As he pulled the third form over, before the women could stop him he found a picture of himself underneath the third form. The signature on the third form pushed down and made an impression on his picture. The women looked worried that he would be angry at her subterfuge and tell her boss. She tried to explain her actions.

"I'm sorry. I just had to get your autograph. I've been following your career since I first saw you on television via the BBC. Please don't tell them what I did." ,she implored.

He looked at her trying to determine if she was being honest with him or was running a scam behind the scenes. He looked deep into her eyes which flickered with fear and apprehension. This was not the first time somebody had tried such a stunt and her remorse seemed genuine.

"What's your name?" ,he requested.

"Mina." ,she shakily said.

He smiled at the women warmly and then started writing on the picture. Handing to the women she looked at it. Over the original impression was his penned signature and the message," Mina, Keep on laughing. Shawn"

Relieved and without thinking she threw her arms around Shawn and hugged him in thanks , then remembering her status she pulled back embarrassed. Looking up she found him smiling at her.

"I'd like to get seconds on that, but I've got to go." ,he joked.

Shawn went through the door and entered the helicopter. As the blades began to turn Shawn waved to the pretty assistant who watched from the safety of the other side of the door. The helicopter began to pull upward towards the sky as the women went down the stairs with the picture and the memories she had.

It wasn't until the chopper was no longer visible that the women bounced down the stairs happily. She had a momento that she would keep for the rest of her life and a memory that would last just as long. 


	2. Blast From the Past

Chapter 2: Blast From The Past

"This is your captain speaking. We are making our decent into Tokyo International Airport where the skies are clear and 28 degrees Celsius. Please prepare for landing by putting your trays up and returning your seats to their full upright positions. For the crew of United Airlines let us thank you for flying the friendly skies and hope that you will fly with us in the future."

The news was greeting by Shawn Foley as he looked at some notes on a mini scratch pad. It was the itinerary for his upcoming visit to Tokyo. It had been planned out long ago and he knew it by heart yet he found relaxation in reading it. The first item was that he was suppose to stay on the plane when it connected with the terminal, that transportation had been arranged to meet him next to the plane to avoid possibly causing a mob scene at the airport. Continuing to look at the schedule he realized that there would be little time for sightseeing or anything else. The only way he'd get any time off was if something unusual happened. As the most recognized figure of the troupe he was always the first choice of anything that was happening. For the most part he didn't mind the attention but now that the group was going to Tokyo there was something special he really wanted to do. Now he doubted he would have the opportunity and that thought depressed him.

Shawn felt a prodding on his right shoulder, turned his head and looked at the concerned face of his fellow Laff Factory member Jack "Gator" Gainer.

"What's the matter mate? You look like someone just died." ,he spoke in his heavy Australian accent.

"Just nerves I guess. After all this is the first...",he started answering before realizing where he was whispered," Well this will be the first place built outside of England. I want it to go well."

"Is that all? Something tells me you have a lot more on your mind than just business. Something in the area of pleasure perhaps?" ,he teased.

Shawn looked sternly at his counterpart letting him know that he did not appreciate the comment. Only when Jack's eye's turned away unsure what to say next did he go back to looking at his list. Hearing some giggling across the aisle Shawn looked and saw the other three members of the group. Terri Hearst and Susan Hawk were gossiping back and forth. The material of their conversation had to be on the subject of guys, and the discussion must have been of a **_very_** personal nature judging from the blushes of Brian Coe the only true British gentleman of the group.

The sounds of the airplane flaps going down indicated that the plane has begun its decent. Leaning back into his seat Shawn put away the note pad in his pocket and pulled out a pair of sunglasses which he placed on his face. Taking a deep sigh he tried to relax by thinking pleasant thoughts.

The doors of The Laff Factory were locked, the windows secured but for the four sisters it was easy to break into the building. Using the teleportation mirrors of the spaceship they appeared on the upper balcony of the building. Looking around, the foursome tried to get their bearings of the building.

"Avery, Prisma. Check the lower level and see what we can do." ,Catsy ordered

The pair nodded and moved away while Birdy and Catsy moved through the rows of chairs on the upper level chatting as they went down. The pair looked up, down, through each row patrolling the space.

"So this is The Laff Factory. I'm a little disappointed. I had this image of a comedy cathedral and this hardly looks the part." ,Birdy perceived.

"Yes, appearances are deceiving. According to Rubeus though, this little facility became very popular and as its popularity increased so did the amount of positive energy that came from it. We stop it now and we change the future." ,Catsy stated.

"I still think we should have simply burned it to the ground." ,Birdy quibbled.

"Rubeus already explained it to us. If we just burn it down then they'll just rebuild it and we'll had to do what we are doing now. No, we have to not only destroy this place his way, we have to make sure that nobody will ever want to build it again. This dream must die before it is ever born."

The pair reached the front of the balcony to observe where Prisma and Avery had moved to the stage area. Moving back and forth on the stage they kept glancing towards where the audience would be seated. From the balcony the other two observed closely. After several strides across the stage the pair looked up to the balcony. Prizma looked up and shouted.

"We'll have to do this from the balcony. If we try this from the main level then there is a chance he could see what's coming out of the corner of his eye. From the balcony he won't see it coming. Its too high up."

"Are you sure about that?" ,Catsy queried.

"Yes, quite sure." ,Prizma responded

"That does seem to be the best way" ,Avery confirmed.

"All right. Lets get to work." ,Catsy instructed.

Serena's excited screeching nearly shattered the eardrums of all those nearby. All the scouts with the exception of Mina and Artemis were there.

"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! I can't believe it! You're going to meet Shawn Foley! I can't believe it."

"Yeah I know. When Grandfather told me the news I couldn't believe it. They want us to bless the building. US!", Rei responded with equal excitement.

"Well do you need any help? I'm sure you'll be able to find plenty of volunteers. You know. Carrying stuff, maybe even be part of the ceremony?" ,Lita offered trying to invent a means for her and the others to see Shawn Foley live and in person.

Rei's smile started to disappear. In the excitement that became contagious from her friends she almost forgot the news she had to tell them. Summoning the courage to share the bad news she spoke.

"I wish I could but...the instructions we were given are very specific. Only Grandpa, Chad and myself can go. We are not allowed to ask for autographs, or bother any members who might be there. If we break the agreement then the whole thing will be called off and we are getting a very generous donation for this. This is a big deal to grandpa because he wants to bring attention to the temple and there will be a photo shoot involved. It could mean a lot of publicity for the temple. If I blow this for him it would be devastating. As much as I want to meet Shawn and the others I must do this as instructed."

The excitement was replaced by the disappointment of Rei's words but all the girls knew what the Cherry Hills Temple meant to her grandfather. He had dedicated all his life to this temple, it was the only material possession that he ever cared about so he would be able to serve others, to offer blessings and good news. For all the quirks, and odd behavior the elderly man displayed, in this part of his life he was totally dedicated.

"REI! Where are you! Have you gotten the incense yet or are you still chatting with your friends?" ,Rei's grandfather yelled from the outside of the modest temple.

Rei shrinked a bit knowing that her grandfather was wise to her movements. Very little ever escaped his eyes, and he was very old school. Take care of business first and only then is the luxury of friends allowed. Shrugging her shoulders in a 'what can I do' fashion she went to a storage area where the long sticks of incense were stored and selected the appropriate fragrance for the ceremony they were about to perform. Placing them into a long pouch Rei started to run out the door where she bumped into Mina.

"Mina! I'm sorry. Can't stay though. Got to run." ,Rei tried to excuse herself as she hurried to her grandfathers and Chad so they could leave for the trip to The Laff Factory.

Getting up Mina looked dumbfounded as to what just happened and inquired as to Rei's uncharacteristic panic. The others explain the turn of events. When the words 'Laff Factory' came up Mina stiffened a bit. Lita, and Serena were too busy explaining everything to notice but it wasn't missed by Ami. The brains of the group assumed that like the others she too wanted to go but could not. Serena shrugged her shoulders

"Oh well since we can't go with Rei let's go to the ice cream store.", she offered.

"Works for me.", Lita agreed

"Well...maybe for a little while. I should go back home and study for the test I've got it trigonometry.", Ami responded.

"How about you Mina? Want to come?" ,Lita inquired.

For a moment Mina considered going with them. Then declined.

"I better not. I'm still trying to lose weight from that meal at your house. Besides there are a couple of things I should be doing today anyway."

As they parted ways Artemis had a premonition that his lady friend was about to do something incredibly stupid.

Rei stood in front of the van guarding the contents within while her grandfather and Chad brought some of the heavier equipment inside. Her grandfather could have stood guard but he was never one to simply stand around and do nothing. Telling him to take it easy wouldn't work. He refused to ever be thought of as helpless even at his advanced age. She tried to stop worrying after he successfully started an aerobic's/martial arts course. If he guarded the van he would have been more than a match to anybody who tried to mess with him.

The choice of Rei also seemed illogical at first glance. After all a women, especially such a young one being left behind to protect the belongings? Rei kept her eyes focused on anybody who started getting too close to the van. She fixed them with an intense stare. One so fierce that it seemed to scream to all to not mess with this lady.

The most logical choice would have been Chad. He was strong, young, and appeared to be the most manly and macho but in truth he was the weak link of the threesome so the job was left to Rei.

Standing at the door of the van in her red and white priestess attire she saw a long black limousine pulled up in front of The Laff Factory. The reporters who had already arrived surrounded the car, flashbulbs popping and reporters screaming questions before the chauffeur had even gotten out of the vehicle. When he did open the door camera's and microphones were shoved in. Rei started feeling sorry for the passengers inside and wondered how they dealt with this on such a constant level.

'K' was the first person to get out of the car putting a hand over his eyes while waving with the other. Ever the showman the comic joked his way with the reporters who gave him a little space.

Susan Hawk was the first of the group to come out tossing her long blonde hair so that the camera's would be able to get a good profile shot of her sultry figure, she was followed by Brian Coe who tipped his trademark derby to the crowd. Terri Hearst exited waving to all next followed by the almost 7 foot frame of Jack "Gator" Gainer who shook any hand that didn't have a pad or microphone in it. Finally Shawn Foley emerged causing the questions to get louder and faster.

"So what do you think of this facility?", yelled one reporter.

"Have you met the local group yet?", bellowed another.

"What do you think of Tokyo?", came yet another question.

The group was being crushed by the reporters of print, radio, and television. The scene was beginning to get out of hand when 'K' took control.

"Everybody. There will be a complete press conference with the group in about an hour from now just as we promised. They will be more than happy to answer all your questions at that time. Now if you'll excuse me we have to go inside for a little bit to inspect the theater.", K implored.

The group moved on followed by the reporters. As they made their way passed the van, Rei looked at them all with envy. From the first time she ever got on stage she had been bit by the performing bug. She even got strong dose of what it was like when she headlined the school talent show and performed in Sleeping Beauty. These people were at the level of performance she always fantasized about. They were entertainers on the biggest stage of all. They were famous. They were stars. They were...

"REI! Quit daydreaming and help us get the rest of the equipment!", her grandfather bellowed at her, breaking through her mesmerized mind.

She jumped back with a start.

"Get your head out of the clouds. We've got a job to do.", commanded her grandfather.

The chastised Rei passed some of the equipment to her grandfather, some to Chad and took the rest before securing the van. They moved past the reporters who were at the front door waiting anxiously to the inner chamber of The Laff Factory.

It didn't take too long for the threesome to set everything up for the blessing. They had performed the ceremony so often that it was second nature to them how to set everything up. The visiting Laff Factory members came from the back where they had inspected the dressing rooms and found to their surprise their local counterparts. The ones who would continue the work the building had been constructed for after they had left. 'K' was in the middle of sharing the history of the building they were in.

"...this place use to be called Rag Time. A social club that was popular in the 20's and 30's. During World War 2 it was mainly used by the military for R&R, rest and relaxation. After the war people came here less and less until it was abandoned. Since then it's been used as a movie theatre, a dojo, a novelty shop and most recently a video gaming center. None of them stayed very long as the property had not been properly cared for and the upkeep on the building made staying here unprofitable. Now the city council is trying to make this place a popular location again and as a result we were able to buy it cheaply enough. Still we needed to dynamite the entire building to rebuild from square one.

"Well the designers really went all out here.", Terri glowed

"This makes the place back home look like a flat.", Brian added.

"We wanted to have as many of the specifications that you wanted as possible but we also wanted to make this place distinctly Japanese.", 'K' instructed as he guided the group to the middle of the stage.

"So hard to believe that just a few months ago this was just a run down building.", Shawn said in amazement.

Chad, Rei and her grandfather stood ready for action.

"These are the people from the Cherry Hills Temple who will be performing the blessing.", 'K' instructed.

Each member of the group shook the hands of all three with Rei at the end since she was the youngest of the trio. The members all thanked them for coming and let them know how much they appreciated it. As Shawn went down the line he was very cordial to the elderly man and Chad. When he shook Rei's hand he paused for a moment, smiling at her.

"So you're a priest? I never knew that Shinto priests were so young...or so lovely."

Rei blushed at the complement unsure what to say. She was mesmerized by his gentle smile and charmed by his soft words as the photographer begun taking pictures of the two of them together.

"Uhhhh. Thank you.", she finally accepted.

Rei noticed out of the corner of her eye that her grandfather was less then pleased with the moves the young man was putting on his granddaughter. That was simply part of his defensive nature where she was concerned. As important as the temple was for him, he took care of Rei like his own daughter and a contributor no matter how large the amount would ever be allowed to show any disrespect towards her. Chad put his hand on the elderly mans shoulder to assure him that nothing was going to happen. This was familiar territory for him. As a former rock and roll drummer, he knew the importance of connecting with the audience. It didn't matter if it was for thousands of screaming fans or a single person. It was important for the performer to make every fan feel wonderful in their presence. He marveled at the ease in which Shawn worked the room. It made him envious and a little jealous that what Shawn did so easily always took great effort for Chad because of his stage fright. It was that very fear that eventually led him to the temple where he now worked as the assistant leaving the world of performing rock and roll behind.

With all the introductions taken care of, the participants took their places for the blessing. The fire were started in their ceremonial bowls. Incense was lit and the aroma was allowed to start filling the auditorium.

The trio waited until everything was as it needed to be. It was time for the performers to be the audience to watch Rei, Chad, and her grandfather become the performers and do what they had been trained to do.

The performers stood in the middle of the three fire bowls spread out in the form of a giant triangle. The three held the tassels used for blessings up high in the air with a long thin pole. Each of them equally spread apart from the others walking around the members of the troupe. The tassels were waved to and fro with great kinetic energy. The elderly man spoke a prayer softly so that while knowing he was saying something it was too soft to be understood by anybody. The performers kept their heads down clasping their hands in reverence to the ceremony. All the while the photographer standing on the outside of the sacred formation continued to snap pictures

"Oh great fire we beseech you. Bring down your blessing to these performers and this building who seek to give out peace through the laughter that they wish to provide. Give them strength and fortify their souls so that they may reach their lofty goal. Let there be more laughs and less hatred" ,The old man spoke for the incantations.

From above the railing of the balcony a figure transformed itself. Originally one of the chairs in a long line of chairs a metamorphosis took place. Becoming a large gray porcupine in form with needles protruding from every area of its body, the figure crouched against the railing giving itself a chance to get use to this form. It had been left behind by the four sisters to act as both a guard and an assassin. His instructions were quite specific.

"Chameleon, stay here until Shawn Foley arrives. Eliminate him. Then burn down the building.", the words echoed from Catsy's voice.

All he needed was a clear shot at his target. From his vantage point there was too small a target because the body of Gator was between Chameleon and Shawn and the assassin didn't want to lose his biggest advantage. The element of surprise would allow him to strike before his target knew what hit him.

The priests turned around with their sacred talismans and resumed their waving.

It was Rei who first sensed the evil within the auditorium, but her grandfather was not very far behind. She stopped the ceremony to look around to determine a face to the evil. She looked at her grandfather.

"Yes Rei. I sense it too. There is a great evil right here in this room with us."

"Where master?", inquired Chad who did not possess the keen awareness of evil that the other two priests possessed but would do whatever was needed.

The performers stopped their genuflection and raised their eyes. The look of total befuddlement crossed their eyes. Rei and her grandfather moved outside the triangle trying to pin down the exact location of the evil.

The assassin realized that his presence was detected but not identified. He still had a chance to complete his assignment. He knew the location of the stage and had seen beforehand while he had transformed himself into one of the chairs where the fire bowls were located.

The assassin stood up and fired its first quill at the fire bowl closest to the front of the stage tipping it over setting the stage on fire. Before the first quill had hit its target a second, third and fourth quill was fired in machine gun fashion. The performers scattered away from the fire as Chameleon dispersed its mini arrows across the stage towards Shawn Foley. The quills were close, within the next few shots the target would be hit. Chad moved towards a moving Shawn seeing the pattern of the shots and his running. Rei and her grandfather could do nothing from their vantage point

"Venus Love Chain Attack!" ,came a voice from the above as a chain of energy in the form of miniature golden hearts shot forth from a young women's right hand striking the assassin who tried to move out of the way.

He was partially successful which caused the blow to only stagger him instead of causing any real damage. The young girl with the large red ribbon in her hair and orange skirt leaped from the window at the back of the balcony towards the assassin. A kick to the face staggered the assassin who went to raising his quilled arm for a counterattack but he was sent over the railing of the balcony with a reverse spinning back kick.

As he fell Rei and her grandfather drew into their ceremonial garb and pulled out anti-evil parchments. The assassin hit the ground and was pummeled with the holy items. The two Shinto priests banished the demon from the world causing it to dissolve into dust which blew away even though there was no wind within the building.

"We've got somebody hurt here!", bellow Gator.

The two figures in the seating area, the one figure still in the balcony, and the remaining members who had fled into the wings of the auditorium came out. Shawn had fallen on the ground with Chad on top of him. Some of the quills from the assassin were embedded into his thighs and calves. As Shawn crawled out from under the third member of the Cherry Hills temple it was easy to see that it was Chad who had taken the quills. The twitching in his legs showed the extent of the pain as the young man had his elbows drawn up close to his chin and his arms up and over his head in a clasp trying to minimize the sounds of his distress.

"That thing was shooting at us and next thing I knew he knocked me down.", offered Shawn in an explanation," Is he going to be all right?"

The elderly man came up to Chad and examined the damage. Grabbing the quill carefully so he wouldn't get pricked the man pulled it out where it dissolved. In spite of his resolve Chad screamed which brought Rei over to offer comfort.

"The wound is bad. It could be infected. I can use a few things in the van that would help him but I need to get him into the temple where I can heal it completely. Rei! Help me carry him?", he commanded

"Wait. Let me help. I owe him.", quickly volunteered Shawn.

Grateful for the offer Grandpa Hino had Shawn come over. With each man taking one of Chads arm over their shoulder, one arm clasping his back, and another under the thigh they hoisted Chad in the air and started moving him out. Sailor Venus had come down the flight of stairs from the balcony to see the Shawn, and Grandpa Hino carry Chad out the door. The other members of The Laff Factory came out to where their rescuer was. They all expressed their gratitude towards their heroine. Sailor Venus also noticed the strong 'what are you doing here' stare from Rei which made her uncomfortable.

"You are one of those Sailor Scouts aren't you? We've read about your group. Forgive me for not remembering but which one are you?", asked Brian Coe

"I am called Sailor Venus.", she answered

"I don't know if you ever been told this but you look a lot like a heroine we use to have in England. She was Sailor V and you look so much like her. Are the two of you related perhaps?", queried Heather

"No, were not related but I have heard of her and I can understand why you'd think that.", Venus admitted.

"That lady was something else. Its such a shame that she's died at such a young age.", Gator reminisced as the others nodded their heads in agreement.

Sailor Venus told them the truth that she wasn't related to Sailor V but it wasn't the whole truth. After all Sailor V and Sailor Venus were the same person. After fighting the negaverse by herself for months in England she had staged her own death so that she could return to Japan without arousing suspicions as to her secret identity. Hearing these people talk about her and the things she did with such reverence touched her heart. It was nice to know that the things she did almost two years ago had not been forgotten, or that she had been forgotten. That the image of Sailor V while still existing in movies, video games, and other forms of entertainment, had not damaged what she had really done in her life.

Grandpa Hino and Shawn came back to the auditorium. The grandfather was talking with the young man as if they had known each other much longer than the half hour the two have met. The elderly man was apparently warming up to Shawn.

"I like you young man. I think you have great potential. Perhaps if you ever get tired with all this gallivanting you'll want to come back here and work at my temple. Chad use to be like you going place to place like a gypsy and now he's found peace and happiness within our walls.", Grandpa Hino spoke trying earnestly to sell the young man on the advantages of a simple life as a Shinto priest

"I'll have to keep that in mind sir but for now I do have an obligation to the people I've promised to tour with.", Shawn answered to keep the head of the temple amused.

"I understand. After all honoring one's commitments are important too. It shows that you are a man of integrity. Keep my offer handy though. I think its a challenge you won't regret.", the elderly man continued to give his sales pitch.

Rei simply shook her head in amazement and disbelief. Her grandfather had done it again.

Shawn nodded his head in acknowledgment as he approached Sailor Venus.

"I want to thank you for destroying whatever that was. How did you know we were in trouble?", Shawn asked.

"It was a simple coincidence that I was nearby when I sensed something and decided to investigate."

Rei looked at Sailor Venus with a scowl that indicated that she didn't believe the tale. Venus was certain that she would hear about this later. Luckily for now the need to keep

Rei's secret identity hidden prevent the fire attacker with a temper to match from getting on her case.

"Well I hope you don't take this for being rude but I've got to book it out of here. No rest for the weary.", Sailor Venus said as she made her way out of the building making sure she didn't make any further eye contact with Shawn in fear of doing something she might regret.

Sailor Venus hopped from building roof to building roof to make anyone following her travels work very hard. She decided on an alley between the two longest buildings. Jumping down from the roof to the pavement she twisted and turned in the air until she was able to land gently on the ground with minimal impact. Looking around she could see no windows. Staring down both sides of the long alleyway she was far enough from the main sidewalks where nobody would be able to watch what she was about to do. Taking the power stick in her hand she transformed herself from Sailor Venus back to Mina Aino. Leaning her back into one of the walls she started to slide down to a seated position. Putting her hands into her face she started weeping heavily.

Huffing and puffing, Artemis had finally caught up with his charge. From the moment he had seen her leave The Laff Factory he was in pursuit. Something must have gone wrong he was thinking. He had tried to stop her from seeing Shawn Foley. Now seeing her break down in from of him, he wished that he had done more to stop her.

"Mina?", he asked cautiously, "What happened?"

"Nothing.", she sobbed trying to pull herself together.

" You wouldn't be this upset if nothing happened so tell me the truth. What happened?", he pressed hoping that he wasn't going to far.

"Nothing happened. I mean **_nothing happened._** I saw him and he was being attacked by the negaverse. I saved him but then...but then...I froze up. I couldn't do anything. I couldn't say anything. I wanted to say so much to him but I couldn't. I had to leave. before I made a total fool of myself."

Mina broke down again her hands shaking violently from emotions that were being pushed to their limits.

Artemis moved onto Mina's lap under the arms that were being supported by her knees. Rubbing his head against the heaving chest of the young women he purred. He wished that he could have been born a human so he could put his arms around her and offer comfort. He wished his arms could wrap around her body so he could protect her. He wasn't human though, he was just a cat and could only do the things that mother nature offered him to do. Nudge against the young girl, purr, let his soft fur rub against her, and if he could do nothing else, he just be there for her to let her know that he cared for her.

Shawn went into his luggage and pulled out a shirt. Placing it on a hanger he put it with the other clothes he had already taken care of. He made sure there would be enough room left over for his roommate to do the same. The contents of the suitcase were just about empty. The only thing left inside was a small photograph. Too large to be put in a wallet, too small to be put in a frame. It had laid flush against the side wall of the suitcase where its construction was the sturdiest. Still it had shown a few folds here and there indicating that it had been through quite a bit. He pulled it out carefully and looked at it. It brought out a mixture of feeling that brought out a melancholy smile.

The knock alerted Shawn to his roommates arrival. He placed the picture on the night stand, made his way to the door and opened it where his roommate stood with a large suitcase in each hand and a valise over one shoulder. Gator waddled his way into the room under the weight and unceremoniously dumped the belongings onto the bed then collapsed on top of it breathing heavily.

"Don't know how you do it mate. You bring up your stuff and you're not even breathing hard. I do the same and I need an oxygen mask."

"Maybe if you exercised a little more you wouldn't be getting out of shape. The only weights I've seen you lift since we started this tour have been filled with beer."

"Maybe your right Flake. Maybe I should start with a little wrestling. I wonder if Terri or Heather would be interested?"

Shawn smiled. Leave it to Gator to find a way to bring girls into the conversation. He never met a female he didn't like, or try to pursue. Luckily he never brought any of the ones he charmed up to the room when they were together. He was more interested in the pursuit than the capture.

The two were so different in many respects. They had different tastes in music, food, in ways to keep themselves entertained when the shows were over. It seemed as though there was nothing that the two agreed on. Yet for all their differences the pair had formed a strong bond. There was practically nothing that they didn't know about each other.

Gator saw the photograph leaning against the lamp and his demeanor turned serious. Pointing his finger at the picture to make his point he asked.

"So you think you'll actually find her Flake? Tokyo has a lot of people in a small area. It'll be like looking for a needle in a haystack mountain. It'll take a miracle."

"I know. I know. I have to try though. I couldn't live with myself if I didn't try. Seeing that sailor scout at the factory brought back some pretty strong memories. I'd like to think that its a good omen that somehow I'll find her. Still it won't be easy. I've already tried to get the phone number through the operator but its still unlisted. That didn't surprise me but it does make things more difficult."

"Aye, you had some strong feelings about her."

"You weren't exactly shy and reserved about your opinions about her too."

The two friends smiled at each other in remembrance. Then Shawns smile disappeared as he started becoming very serious. An expression rarely seen by anybody.

"This is nuts. I'm here in Tokyo with millions of people in the city and I'm looking for someone I haven't seen in two years and if I do find her I expect things to somehow be like they use to. Do you think I'm crazy?", Shawn asked in earnest.

"Of course your crazy. You're 'The Flake'.", Gator smirked.

"Did you lose your mind or has the peroxide finally gone to your brain? What were you thinking coming down to the Laff Factory like that?", angrily accused Rei.

It was late in the day and the sailor scouts had come together for a meeting at the Cherry Hills Temple. Instead of dealing with the latest developments concerning the negaverse, Rei was ripping into Mina for her appearance during the blessing. Mina stood there with a face set in stone looking very agitated.

"Well it certainly looked like I was needed there didn't it. After all if I hadn't shown up what would **_you_** have been able to do?", Mina countered.

Mina felt her blood boiling and turned her back to Rei before she might say something that would be regretted later. The other girl however took it as a sign of ignoring her. Roughly grabbing the clothes, Rei spun Mina around, forcing her to meet Rei face to face.

"Don't you dare turn your back to me.", Rei demanded.

Mina's temper had reached critical. Grabbing Rei by her gee she pushed with all her strength throwing her down backwards with authority. Rei's head hit hard on the ground, stunning her momentarily. The other Sailor Scouts were too startled to move. None of them had ever seen Mina this angry as she took two steps and stood with her shaking hands clenched in fists over the prone body of Rei who also was to surprised to offer any resistance.

"I am so sick and tired of your domineering attitude. You try to run things like your in charge of everything, that you're running the show, the scouts, me. That you know everything. Well I've had it and will not stand by listening to you rip me apart for no good reason. You expect me to just stand by, have you insult me, then have me cower and say...",Mina's voice took on a mocking tone of fear," Oh I am soooo sorry Rei, Ohhhhhh please forgive me Rei."

Her voice went back to angry tones very quickly.

"Well I'm not going to say it and if you can't deal with that then to hell with it, and to hell with you too."

"Mina?", spoke Serena very softly, with fear in her voice.

The fright from Serena voice stopped Mina. She stood there realizing the fullness of what she had just said. The looks on the other scouts faces spoke volumes. In all the time they had known her none had ever seen her snap like this and it both scared and concerned them. Even she didn't know what had come over her. She looked at Rei who was scrambling to get back on her feet while trying to keep a defensive posture just in case she would try the same tactic again. She started becoming afraid and ran out of the room to the outside without a word trying to hold back her tears.

Artemis wanted to run after her but first he had to perform some damage control with her friends. He saw the scouts dumbfounded looks. They looked at him hoping for some sort of logical explanation. He gave the scouts a look of total confusion as if he was just as clueless for Mina's behavior as they were. He did have a pretty good clue what set her off but couldn't reveal it.

He had a pretty good idea of where she had gone too. Whenever she had been going through tough times in the past there was always a place where she went to. It was her sanctuary. A place where she could sit and think things out without distractions.

He excused himself from the group to go where he sensed she'd be. It took a while to get where he needed to go since he was not being shuttled on Mina's shoulder. He finally arrived back at the Aino residence where he made his way to Mina's bedroom. As he expected the young lady was laid out on her bed clutching a large brown teddy bear to her body, crying her eyes out. Leaping onto her bed he laid down next to her. He didn't say anything . He had to bring the girl out of it carefully. This was no time for accusations, or condemnations. Besides her own conscious was being ten times harder on her than he could ever be. He would wait for her to make the first move, the first statement.

A great deal of time passed she finally spoke. She was confused, a little frustrated, trying to put into words what her heart was feeling. In many ways she was no different than any other teenage girl but then most teenage girls weren't sailor scouts with the responsibility of saving a world that sometimes seemed bent on destroy itself anyway.

"I guess I really put my foot in it didn't I.", surmised Mina wiping some of her tears away..

"Well lets just say that it wasn't one of your shining moments."

Artemis tried to say it with a little humor inflected trying to take the sting out of the remark. She already felt bad and he didn't want to make the girl feel even worse than she was.already.

"What's happening to me Artemis? I don't know why I behaved the way I did to Rei."

Artemis had to be careful. Depending on how this situation is handled she would either be better off for it or it would send her even further down her emotional roller coaster.

"I think deep in your heart, you know why you did what you did. I know you didn't mean to knock Rei down. I think deep down Rei knows that too. You're too kind and gentle a soul to behave that way under normal circumstances. Obviously there is something else that is bothering you. Its bothering you down to your soul. You can try denying it all you want but you can't ignore it or run away from it. You've done that already and do you feel any better?"

His words were spoken softly and gently, without any form of accusation in his voice. He would let himself be used as a sounding board so that the young girl would know the right thing to do. Mina shook her head negatively to his question.

"What am I going to do?", she asked.

Their private conversation turned out to be not so private. On the outside of the windowsill there was a large black female cat who had been eavesdropping on the entire conversation. Luna had suspected that Artemis knew more than he was letting on and this conversation was proving it. While not knowing what the exact problem was she determined that it had something to do with her past. It could have been something recent or before she joined the other scouts. She was angry at Artemis for keeping this secret from her.

She knew how to handle Artemis. She would learn what she needed to know from him soon enough.

The skull session between Mina and Artemis went nowhere. About the only thing that had been decided was that none of the other scouts would be told. At least not yet. Other than that every plan they came up with got shot down when logic entered the scene. Mina was tired from crying, it was late in the day, dinner was going to be served soon then it would be bedtime. In the end the pair decided to sleep on it and hopefully come up with a plan of action the next morning.

As she was getting ready for bed Mina hit the right side of her head with her palm as she realized something.

"Oh my goodness. I never did apologize to Rei for what happened."

Grabbing her scout communicator she prepared to make the call.

"I hope she isn't still mad at me."

Before she could press the button to activate the signal a light blipped on the communicator. Somebody was calling her.

Pressing the activation button Rei's face appeared. She didn't look like her normal confident self. She looked saddened.

"Mina? Its Rei, can we talk? I want to apologize for the things I said to you this afternoon. I was wrong to say what I did. I guess I was just...I don't know why I behaved the way I did. Can you forgive me?"

Rei spoke very fast as if afraid that Mina would cut her off.

"If anybody is owed an apology Rei, I owe it to you. I didn't mean to push you. I guess I was... something just came over me and I'm sorry Rei."

Artemis listened as the girls went back and forth trying to out apologize each other. Well the day had its shares of up and downs but it was finishing on a good note.

Rubeus had been summoned to a meeting before the Wiseman. It was a meeting that he would have preferred avoiding. Entering the room he moved forward towards his master while his mind sought a way to explain the failure of his group.

"Tell me Rubeus, why does Shawn Foley still live? Why does The Laff Factory still exist." the Wiseman interrogated.

There was no way to lie to the Wiseman. Had Shawn Foley been eliminated the future would have been changed, no Foley, no Laff Factory. No Laff Factory, victory for the negamoon. There was no way to sugarcoat the truth.

"We were foiled by one of the Sailor Scouts. Chameleon was sent for the kill but before he could succeed he was killed."

"That is most...unfortunate. How did she find out we were there?"

"That I don't know. The sisters were only there a short time and Chameleon was well camouflaged into the very fabric of the building. We couldn't have left any negaenergy behind for them to follow."

"Was anybody else killed in the attack?"

"No. Although he did get a couple of shots that hit one of the priests."

Rubeus did not like the way the line of questioning was leading.

"You say that we were foiled by one of the scouts. There was only one there?"

"From what the sisters told me, yes."

"Which scout was it?"

"The one called Venus."

"So I see."

The Wiseman placed his right hand under his chin, stroking it as he thought. A low growl was let out as he let this new knowledge fertilize his thoughts. Rubeus stood by waiting for the next action of his leader.

"It would seem that there are three possible scenario's in play here. Number 1, that the sailor scouts have already figured out our plan and are trying to stop us. Number 2, that the scouts assumed that The Laff Factory was a crystal point and this Venus was sent to scout ahead. This would mean that the scouts will be observing the Laff Factory and not our real target. Number 3, that she was there simply as a matter of coincidence although I am not a big believer in coincidence. We must determine what their intentions are."

"How do you want us to do that?", asked Rubeus.

"Split the four sisters up. Have two stay at The Laff Factory and have them determine if any scouts are there. Take the other two sisters meet up with our victim and see if any scouts show up. If they don't then they are to kill him. If they do show up then do nothing and report the information back to me."

"As you wish."

"Impress this upon your troops. I want the sisters to do this job personally. No allies will be permitted and if they disobey me I can assure you they will be dealt with quite harshly. If they can not do this then perhaps it is time for me to reconsider who should be involved in this mission."

A lump got caught in Rubeus's throat. The Wiseman never made an idle threat. He would carry it out.

"We will not make the mistake of rushing in blindly. That has been a repeated failure. Now we need stealth, cunning, we must use our brains as well as pure force. Time is running out for us so it is crucial that we make the best use of it. Leave me now and prepare your troops. "

Rubeus bowed reverently to the Wiseman and departed. While Rubeus took care of the mission the wiseman would sit back and see how to use what information he had learned to the best advantage.

'Meet me in the alley behind the arcade at 3 p.m.. There is something we need to discuss in person.'

That was the entire message Luna had sent Artemis. No explanation as to why they needed to meet, what the topic of discussion was that would be so important as to have them meet without the other scouts present. Still he showed up at their meeting place in an alley behind the video arcade.

Artemis walked into the alley and scoured the area making sure he was not interrupting some of the local feline residents. He trekked through the area carefully until he was at the back of the arcade. Luna had already arrived sitting down regally with her head held up proudly and chest out. A couple of local cats were looking at the ebony female eagerly but a strong look from Luna kept them where they were. Any cat who wanted to test her fighting skills would be badly beaten and Artemis knew it. For all her matriarch looks she was as tough a fighter as anyone. He was safe so long as Luna was nearby. Luna looked at Artemis and got down to business.

"The reason I got you here face to face is because I wanted to talk to you about Mina and what happened yesterday at the temple.", Luna said not bothering to start with any small talk.

"Its already been taken care of. We had a long talk and she apologized to Rei for what she did. She still feels pretty bad about it so I'm sure it won't happen again. So is that what this was about?".

"Its not just about yesterday. I've been noticing a definite change in that girl for about a week. I haven't said anything because it didn't seem proper at the time and didn't seem to be any of my business. After yesterday however it has become my business and I plan on getting to the bottom of it."

"Back off Luna, this is none of your business. I don't tell you how to handle Serena, don't start telling me how to handle Mina.", Artemis spoke indignantly.

"If something is happening that is going to affect the scouts we have a right to know what it is. I would say that something is happening, it is affecting the scouts, and we better nip this in the bud now. So what is going on?", pressed Serena.

The white cat was starting to become uncomfortable with the situation. Luna was right about her need to know. He had a duty to her, but what about his duty to Mina? What about his promise to her?

"I'm sorry Luna. I can't tell you.", he finally said.

"You can't tell me? Or you won't?", Luna pressed.

The black cat walked to her associate who was beginning feel the peer pressure. He started to sweat uncomfortably looking for a way out of this predicament.

"I won't tell you because I can't tell you. Look I made a promise to Mina never to talk about this with anybody. Please respect that and drop the subject."

"I'm sorry but this is too serious. I demand you tell me what is going on.", Luna directed.

Artemis scowled at Luna, his face taking on very hostile tones. A nerve had been struck.

"You demand?", he said calmly.

You **_demand!_**", his voice started to rise in anger.

"Who are you to demand what's going on with Mina!", his rage reaching full boil.

"I am...",Luna started to say before she was cut off quickly.

"**_NO! _**You have **_no right_** to **_demand anything!_** Where were you to help when I found Mina? Where were you when she had to take on the negaverse as Sailor V? Where were you when she had to do that all by herself! It was just her and me back then. Nobody else to turn to for support! No human friends she could talk to about all this! You only had to deal with Serena alone for a short time! Then you found Ami, then Rei, then Lita and they help you! Not us! It was Mina and myself! I was the one who had to comfort her when she cried into her pillows at night! I was the one who listened to her heartache because she would have to abandon any sort of normal life to do what she knew in her heart was right! You weren't there when we had to deal with not only her learning to deal with the two personalities of Mina Aino and Sailor V but all the natural difficulties of being a teenager! We went through all sorts of hell together and that makes my promise to her more important than any duty I have to you!"

Luna stood there in stunned silence. She had never heard Artemis talk in such a tone with her before, with such strength, passion, and rage. It normally didn't take much for him to back down to Luna. She had always known what buttons to push to get him to submit but this show of force found herself dumbfounded.

"There were many situations with Serena where you asked us to be patient with her! The time Tuxedo Mask was kidnapped by the negaverse and Serena was devastated! Do you remember that? I sure do! You asked the rest of us to be a little more considerate to her, and that wasn't the only time! You know it as well as I do! Hasn't Mina earned the right to have the same considerations? Doesn't she deserve to be given some space right now! I know she'll do the right thing if she is given the chance to do so! Try to have as much faith in her as I do and don't push us! I will do anything I must to protect that girl including pulling her out of the scouts if that is what it takes!"

Artemis raised his back legs ready to fight Luna if it came to that. Even though both knew he couldn't take her measure the very fact that he was willing to fight over this matter sent a strong message to Luna. She thought carefully about the situation. If she prodded too hard then that would cause more problems. Problems that perhaps would be irrepairable. If she let the subject go the circumstances wouldn't have been changed by their meeting but they wouldn't get any worse. Her partner had made many valid points in his lecture, especially the part of Mina deserving to be given a break like Serena had on many occasions. She sat down and focused her attention on Artemis.

"All right. We'll do things your way for now. I won't ask you anything more about this and I'll tell the other scouts not to challenge Mina. Understand this though. I will attempt to find out what this is all about. I will simply have to do so without your cooperation."

Artemis nodded his head and began to relax. Of course he knew that Luna would still try to solve the mystery. It was her duty. He was also relieved that they were able to resolve this matter peacefully. He didn't like keeping Luna and the others in the dark but he didn't feel any other option was viable.

"Thanks for understanding. Well if there is no other pressing business I have to get going.", Artemis excused himself.

"Of course. If things change though remember. I'm the first ear on the right.", Luna responded.

Artemis scurried out of the alley and started making his way to Mina's school. Luna gave deep thought to the situation as it now stood and decided to bring the other scouts up to date.

Artemis made it to the gates of Mina's school just in time for the end of school bell. He stood at the edge of the gate so the students wouldn't accidentally step on his tail. Occasionally some of the students would stop and pet him, he enjoyed the quick rubs but he never let his attention stray too far. He was vigilant in his search for the one student who he came to see.

Seeing Mina's large red bow he waited until she could see him as well before he ran to her. She held her arms out as the white cat leaped into her arms. She held him lovingly in her arms for a few moments as the pair walked off the grounds. Mina still looked a little down in the mouth.

"Whats the matter Mina? Hard day at school?"

"Yeah. I got some of my tests back and while I did all right in world history but I totally bombed in computer science and algebra. I've got to show those tests to mom and dad and get their signature on it. When they see these scores they're going to go ballistic."

"Well I hate to be the bearer of more ad news but we've got some other problems. I just had a little meeting with Luna and it concerned you."

Mina froze for a moment. Artemis talked quickly to reassure you.

"Don't worry. I didn't tell her anything. I kept my promise. I got her to vow not to talk about it and to tell the others to back off but you know she'll try to use other avenues to figure out whats going on. She'll use the other scouts talents to solve this problem."

"I know but I can't worry about that now. Maybe by the time they figure it out this whole thing will be over with. I've wanted to talk to them about this but every time I get ready to say something there is something in my guts telling me not to."

The pair continued to walk to Mina's house, trying to hash out the problem. Whenever somebody might get close enough to hear them the twosome would be quiet until the danger passed. Of course should someone happen to overhear them they had a plan of action where Mina would pretend to be a ventriloquist and Artemis the puppet. Each tried to come up with an idea to resolve the predicament but to no avail. Most of the time Mina looked at her cat but to avoid bumping into the other pedestrians Mina would take quick glances forward. One of those times caused Mina to stop abruptly. She pronounced,

"It's him! It's him!"

Artemis had no clue what she was talking about as she started running swiftly. Looking ahead Artemis tried to figure out who the 'him' was. She stopped at an alley and looked down its narrow corridor. It was too dark to see anything clearly.

"What did you see?"

"It's him. It's Shawn.", she excitedly answer.

"It couldn't possibly be him. After all he's famous right now. One sighting of him and there would be a flood of people trying to get to him.", he tried to debate.

"No, it **_was_** him! I know it. He had sunglasses and a hat on but he was also wearing that old retro Denver Bronco's jacket he always wore with the Sailor V pin on his chest. Its him I tell you! I could always spot him with that thing on from a mile away."

Artemis wasn't sure if the girl had really seen him and the likeliness of it happening in such a manner was remote but he had to let her find out.

"All right girl. Lets investigate. First though lets have you..."

Shawn Foley stood inside the dingy alleyway taking deep breaths trying to control his nervousness. He had followed the map given to him by "K" to reach the destination. He now stood by ready to make his appearance. Making sure he was far enough in the alley so that nobody would be able spot him easily he took off his jacket which even in the dusk of the alley stood out like a beacon.

He had been approached by the talk show host after lunch and asked to pay a surprise visit to one of the local outdoor restaurants to try and drum up more support for The Laff Factory. Shawn was familiar with the routine. Show up unannounced at a location where there would be lots of people present, get the crowd excited, shake hands, sign a few autographs, maybe blow some air kisses to the female fans, then before the crowd got too unruly get out of the area.

Shawn was not happy with the suddenness of the plan. He was even less enthusiastic when he learned that no security would be present, not even one plainclothes cop. 'K' explained that the spot he was going to was popular with teenagers and that even constables in regular clothing would stand out because of their ages. Shawn tried to press the importance of some sort of protection in light of the attack at the Laff Factory earlier. While sympathetic to the problem, 'K' tried to use reasoning and logic to counteract the defense being put up by the young man. The arguments went back and forth, hot and heavy until Shawn reluctantly agreed to go through with it. He still wasn't thrilled about the way it was being put together but for the good of the show he would do it.

A hand reached out to him from behind. Tapping Shawn on the shoulder he spun around in surprise slamming his back against the alley wall.

"Are you all right? I saw you come in here and thought you might be in danger", a soft voice asked.

Looking up he saw the attractive figure of Sailor Venus in front of him. What he would never know is that when Mina started going into the alley it was Artemis who suggested that she transform since he had seen the sailor scout recently and her appearance might cause less embarrassment than of Mina Aino.

"You startled me that's all. I was told that here I'd have some privacy before I went out there. Since you're here though perhaps you could help me. I'm suppose to go out there in a few minutes and I'd feel a lot safer if I had somebody watching my back. I could pay you..."

Running up the stairs to the bridge which spanned the multilane highway Ami's breath was becoming labored. Originally she walked with Serena and Lita who were all heading to the temple for a scout meeting, until she discovered that she had left some important work back at the school. It was a report that had to be finished that night. She ran as quickly as her small legs would allow her to return to Crossroads Junior High, getting there before the janitors would close it up for the night. Now coming back the limbs had become heavy and sore. As Sailor Mercury she could have covered the distance easily but as everyday Ami her speed and endurance was less than desirable plus her petite size gave her an shortened gait requiring her to use more movement to cover the same distance as others would need. Her pace slowed down until she was a few steps away from the top of the bridge where it was reduced to a walk. At the top Ami stopped to lean over the railing so she could catch her breath, letting her briefcase rest against the grated fence so she could rest her perspiring head rest against her arms. She cursed at herself under her breath for having been so forgetful. She was normally a lot more organized that this and couldn't figure out what caused her to space out the report.

With her fatigue passing Ami stood up, picked up her briefcase to continue her trek across the span of the bridge when she heard some women scream. Looking into the direction of the sound she noticed several women running to someone. Looking harder she noticed the reason for all the excitement. Shawn Foley had appeared out of nowhere and the people from the nearby outdoor restaurant were flocking to meet him. What a stroke of bad luck this was. Here was a celebrity of top caliber in her midst and though she wanted to go over and get an autograph from the young man, her presence was needed at the sailor scout meeting. Duty had to come first.

Going down the stairs on the other side she noticed something out of the corner of her eye. Looking upward she observed Sailor Venus on the roof of the building above the fray. She was looking down on the scene before her.

Ami sensed something was up. This was the second time in two days she had been nearby when Shawn Foley appeared. It had to be more than coincidence.

Sailor Venus observed the scene below her. Shawn had waited until she took her position before he had made his appearance. As the people moved towards him it looked to the casual observer as if he was being attacked. The reality was that they wanted to meet him, to touch him. On the rooftop she waited to move in case something went wrong. One scream of 'help' from him and she would move with decisive certainty to save him. For a moment Shawn looked up to make sure Venus was there. He flashed a quick smile before returning to his duties. The fact that he hadn't yelled for her assistance yet didn't make her feel any easier.

The crowds movement was towards the order window of the restaurant. Even from three floors up she could see napkins being thrust into his face where he plucked from a hand, scrolling his signature upon it, finally placing it back into the open hand. There were exciting screams as the lucky hands clutched their golden prize. She was envious of the crowd below. She wanted to be down there next to him. To touch him to...

"Can't you be serious for just one moment? Does everything have to be a joke?", a voice in her head shouted.

It was an echo from the past that reverberated through Sailor Venus's mind. A moment in time which she wished had never happened. She still remembered it painfully well.

"Can you stop being so serious all the time! I'm trying to help!", a voice shouted back in a manly voice.

"Get away from me! Leave me alone!", her voice resonated followed by the footfalls of her feet running.

After a few seconds of silence came another voice

"He's not here. I don't know where he went.", announced a male voice.

Sailor Venus's heart ached with the feelings she hadn't felt in some time.

The throng surrounding Shawn Foley had made their way to the order window and Shawn's meal had been delivered. Sitting down at a table Shawn tried to eat the dinner with chopsticks as the onlookers observed. Plunging the two sticks into the food Shawn tried to balance the sticks and bring a dumpling from the bowl to his mouth. Part way up the grip became too strong and the sticks crossed dropping the dumpling off the sticks before it could get into his mouth. On the second attempt the dumpling didn't even get an inch away from the dish before it fell back down. In spite of the best efforts of the crowd there was some laughter and giggling at his failure. To them eating with chopsticks came second nature and while embarrassing to snicker at someone's misfortune it was amusing to watch. Shawn tried to put the crowd at ease by saying something Sailor Venus couldn't hear but it brought about more laughter from the crowd. On the third attempt the dumpling again fell off the sticks but missed the bowl to fall off the table.

A teenage girl sitting at the table leaned toward him and showed him the proper way to hold the chopsticks. She even helped by placing her hands on his, position his hand properly with the instruments between his fingers. Deciding against trying for another dumpling Shawn scooped out a small portion of rice. Gingerly bringing them up he was finally able to get the portion in his mouth to which the crowd responded with cheers. Sailor Venus found herself becoming jealous of the young girl who was smiling at Shawn.

There would be more misadventures in this meal. Shawn dropped his food as often as he got it into his mouth. As he chewed on his meal his free hand continued to sign as many autographs as he could during the forty five minute appearance.

"Quite a view from here isn't it?", came a tiny voice.

Spinning around Sailor Venus saw her fellow sailor scout Mercury looking innocently down up on the scene.

"What are you doing here and how did you find me?", Venus asked.

"I saw you as I passed the bridge. We better get going or else we're going to be even later for the scout meeting than we are already."

"I'm not going to be at the meeting Mercury, I'm afraid that I'm the topic of discussion tonight and it would be better if I not show up."

Sailor Venus looked away from her friend unable to tell her the exact reason why the meeting had been truly called.

"Isn't there anything I can do to help? Whatever it is I'm sure I can help."

Sailor Venus looked down on the scene below as tears starting welling up in her eyes.

"There is nothing you can do. There is nothing anybody can do."

Having observed Sailor Venus and Mina's habits in the past, Sailor Mercury knew it would be futile to pursue any further at this time. Any more information would have to come via subterfuge and she had the means to do so. Placing a hand on Sailor Venus's shoulder to show there was no ill will felt, Mercury spoke.

"I can see why you'd want to watch him even from a distance. He is quite a hunk. If I didn't have Greg I could be wigging out on him big time."

There was no reaction from her friend who let the comment pass without response. Mercury began to feel uncomfortable with the situation.

" I better get to the meeting though before the others get mad at me.", Sailor Mercury sheepishly excused herself.

Removing her hand from Sailor Venus's shoulder, Sailor Mercury was able to leave a small tracking device just under her collar where it wouldn't be easily noticed. Going to the rear of the building she jumped off leaving the other scout behind. She hoped the device would not be needed but had the feeling she would before too much longer

The actions of Sailor Venus and Sailor Mercury were watched very closely by Prizma and Avery. On a roof across the street they had kept themselves low to the rooftop to avoid detection.

"Looks like the scrawny sailor scout is leaving. Lets set up for an attack.", Avery suggested.

Her partner shook her head negatively.

"Remember what the Wiseman said. If the sailor scouts show up we do nothing except report it. Would you like to stand in front of Wiseman and tell him why you disobeyed his direct orders? If you are then your both braver and stupider than I am. Lets wait. Perhaps an opportunity will present itself where there will be no scouts present. We've got time. We will wait.", Prizma advised.

The pair stayed crouched down and continued to let the drama before them unfold.

Luna and the other scouts continued to wait until Ami finally made her appearance at the temple. The littlest scout blushed with embarrassment. After apologizing for delaying everything the meeting began. Luna began to lay out in the simplest terms why the meeting was being called. The others listened attentively as Luna laid everything she knew out in the open. This included her meeting with Artemis earlier in the day. There was great surprise when Luna recounted the conversation she had with him including his threat to pull Sailor Venus out of the scouts if the group pressed too hard.

"He can't be serious. He'd pull Mina out of the scouts?", Rei surmised.

"He is **_very_** serious about that. That is why whatever we do it'll have to be done without tipping off Mina."

"Didn't he give you any clues to work with?", Lita urged.

"Not directly but perhaps he did give some evidence to work with without realizing he did so. As he got angry with me he talked about him and Mina when she was Sailor V. That could be a very important clue. Then again it could mean absolutely nothing and I'm simply chasing my tail. Rei, I need you to perform a fire reading. See if the spirits will help us. Serena and Lita you stay too just in case. In the meantime, Ami I have a special assignment for you. Use your computer to try and find any sort of connection between Sailor V and Mina's recent behavior."

"You mean like perhaps Sailor V and Shawn Foley?"

The other scouts looked at her wondering what made her make that statement. Ami told them about the chance meeting she had with Mina as Sailor Venus on her way over.

"I can't tell you what to look for Ami but there has to be a connection. This is the 2nd time he's been involved with this. Lets get to work scouts and solve this problem.", Luna encouraged.

"Actually it may have been the third time. Remember the slumber party? Remember how Mina looked a little out of it after the TV show was over and he was on the program too.", Ami informed the group.

"Hey yeah! That's right! She did seem less sociable afterwards.", admitted Lita.

"You may have stumbled onto something here Ami. Warm up that modem young lady. We've got a mystery to solve.", Luna ordered.

It wasn't until a camera crew arrived at the restaurant to snap pictures of the 'impromptu" visit that Shawn left the area. Many of the onlookers were willing to let him leave without incident but a couple of people tried to follow him. It led to a chase down the sidewalks of Tokyo until Shawn was able to turn the corner of a street that was close to an alley. A few steps into the alley Sailor Venus scooped him up and flew back up to the roof where the pair watched his pursuers search in vain for Shawn.

Handing Shawn his disguise back the twosome waited until the coast was clear before they headed back to the hotel where the troupe was staying. Shawn made his way back in disguise via the less traveled sidewalks. Sailor Venus moved from rooftop to rooftop keeping an eye on him in case something went wrong. She felt a sense of sympathy for the figure. All she had ever noticed before was the glamour and glory that went with being famous. Now she was seeing a very different side. To disguise yourself just to go somewhere without being mobbed. At least she could transform into Mina Aino, what could he do? She wished there was something she could to help him.

At the rear entrance of the hotel Sailor Venus dropped down from the rooftop. The duo walked into the back door after checking in with some security people. The two went up flight after flight of stairs until they reached the 8th floor. Shawn gave a cryptic knock on the door. The door was opened by another armed security officer just a crack. Confirming his identity the door was opened wider allowing him then Venus to pass. Shawn explained her presence which satisfied the guard allowing her to entire the area. From the floor door to the room there were no less than a dozen officers present. The entire floor had been secured which left her slightly intimidated.

They entered Shawn's room where he went over to his wallet which was on top of the television set.

"Is all that security really necessary?", she asked

Pulling the money out he counted it carefully twice before he handed it over to the young girl.

"Unfortunately yes. We had a little incident in America. It was a pretty hairy situation. Well here is the money as I promised you. Feel free to count it. Its all there"

Sailor Venus counted the money again not believe she had made so much money for such a short stint as a bodyguard. How she was going to hide this much money from her parents would be a problem. There is no way she could account for this with simple baby-sitting.

"Do all bodyguards get paid this well?"

"Actually I don't know. Normally the sponsor of the city we're in pays the expenses but when I saw you and knowing what my situation was going to be I panicked. I just came up with a figure that sounded good and knew I could actually pay you when we got here."

Shawn tossed the wallet back to the dresser before sitting himself on the bed. Giving a deep exhale he ran his fingers through his hair. Venus could see the retransformation from star to man. It made her feel a little uncomfortable.

"Well if you don't need me for anything else I better be going.", Venus tried to excuse herself.

Shawn jumped back up.

"Please, don't go. I...I'd like to talk with you if I could. That is unless you really have to go somewhere."

Venus looked into his expressive eyes. There was something in them that told her that he really wanted her here right now. She wanted to leave because every moment she stayed increased the possibility of her making a mistake and revealing her true identity which would bring up even more problems. She thought back to the scene at The Laff Factory when she wanted to talk to him but froze. Surely she wouldn't repeat the same mistake by leaving now.

The mouse on Ami's computer moved the arrow on her computer until it reached a link. Double clicking the marker she waited for the website to move through the modem into her Scout mini-data computer. After rubbing her eyes suffering from the constant strain of staring at the monitor, she took a drink of water, all while the page formed.

"Ami, your friends are here to see you!" ,called the voice of her mother.

"Thanks mom!", Ami shouted back.

Getting up from the chair she opened the door and went to her friends. Pleasantries were exchanged to keep up appearances for her mother before they departed to Ami's room to discuss business. Only when the door was closed and Luna standing by to make certain that there was nobody eavesdropping did they start talking.

"Please tell me the fire reading revealed something we can use." ,spoke Ami dejected.

The group shook their heads in a collective no.

"I'm afraid the spirits weren't very cooperative tonight."

Ami looked down disheartened. A beep from her mini data computer alerted her. She grabbed the device and scrolled down the information never spending more than a few seconds on each part.

"I've been going through all the various websites trying to find a connection. I've looked for matches on Mina-Shawn Foley, Sailor V-Laff Factory, Sailor V-Shawn Foley. Not a single match. Ever since I've been going through every website downloading as many into the minicomputer as I can so I can see several at the same time. Do you realize there are still close to a ten thousand websites just for Sailor V?"

"So in other words you're looking for a needle in a haystack aren't you.", Serena conjectured.

Ami nodded her head up and down slightly as she continued skim through the information. Seeing the last piece of information on the computer she reconnected it to her normal computer and continued the process.

"Since this whole scenario has been revolving around Shawn I've decided that the best way to approach this is to get the websites that involve him. Fan clubs, biographies, things like that."

The mini-computer beeped again and the scouts started reviewing the information together hoping Ami's deductions were the right decision.

Not sure she was making the right decision Sailor Venus decided to stay in his room a little while. Sitting down on the bed opposite his they talked. In the beginning the talk was superficial to help break the ice so they could be at ease with each other. Eventually the discussion turned more substantial as they discussed the blessings and even a few of the pitfalls of being so well known to the public and shared their experiences in that regard. Some of the tales were lighthearted and involked a good laugh from both parties. Other were more sobering. Throughout it all Sailor Venus had a gut feeling that Shawn wanted to actually talk about something else but was looking for the right time to speak. In time he gave up trying to work the topic into the discussion and went with the direct approach.

"Can I ask you some personal questions?"

She wasn't sure how personal those questions were going to be and she also wasn't certain if she would even answer them but decided to allow him to at least ask so she nodded her head.

"I heard that you are also nicknamed the scout of love, is that correct?"

"Yes it is."

Shawn struggled for his next question.

"Can I ask you a personal question... as a girl?"

Sailor Venus began to squirm. This may have been more than she bargained for.

"If its not too personal I will."

"I need to ask you a question about love. You see I'm in love with this girl..."

The moment she heard this her heart sank. What she had feared was true. He had gotten over her and found another women to love.

"...only I didn't know how much I cared for her until it was too late and I had made a total fool of myself. The last time we saw each other we had a fight. A pretty bad one. I said some things I shouldn't have and I've regretted every word since. I've been wanting to apologize to her for what happened but then she moved away before I could apologize and even if I can find her one day I don't know if she'll accept the apology. Now so much time has passed I keep thinking she's found another guy and is happy, after all she is the prettiest women I've ever known and most men would give anything to be with her. She was something very special. Yet there is a part of me that wants to believe against all logic and hope that I can find her and that everything will be all right, maybe even better."

Shawn looked down and took a deep breath. Exhaling slowly to get his composure back Shawn continued.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make this into a speech. I guess what I'm asking is after all that has happened I want to see her and try to make things right but I'm not sure if that would do more harm than good. If she's happy I don't want to mess that up for her and yet..."

He couldn't find the words to continue but he had laid out the problem plainly and clearly. Venus struggled with her own heart to share what she thought. Part of her wanted to tell him to leave the girl alone so she might have a chance to win back his heart if she could. As much as she wanted him to come back to her she couldn't lie. If she tried to win back his heart with such underhanded techniques it would bother her conscious forever even if it was successful. She would tell him the truth.

"I say that if you ever find her that its best to tell her. If she's happy then you can still apologize for what happened and at least clear your conscious because you'll know in your heart that you did your best to make it right. On the other hand if she is still available..."

Venus started to strain a little bit because she of what she was saying and what it would mean to her. The closeness that she was to the situation began to show in her voice.

"...perhaps you'll learn that she misses you as you do for her."

Shawn nodded his head and smiled at her.

"I hope you're right. Now all I have to do is find her."

"Do you have a picture of this girl?", Venus asked so she could satisfy her curiosity of who the women was that had taken his heart so completely.

Shawn went over to the night table where the picture was. It had slid down from its upright position. He picked it up and handed it to her.

"It was taken a couple of weeks before we broke up. I never got a chance to show this to her."

She looked at the image for a moment before she raised her eyes to Shawn in surprise.

For a while the scouts took turns at the computer to give Ami a chance to rest her eyes. Rei wasn't able to stay long because with Chad's injuries from the attack at the Laff Factory she had to head to the temple to do his chores as well as hers. Lita left a little later to take care of some personal business. Serena and Luna stayed until Serena's mom phoned her to come home.

Ami had been left all alone again to continue the investigation. Minute after minute passed by uneventfully as she got no closer to her objective. The lack of success was eating away at Ami who was becoming thwarted.

The mini-computer beeped yet again. Once more she grabbed the machine and scanned. She started to wonder that if she had found what she was looking for would she even recognize it or would the constant scanning of the material put her mind to sleep causing her to pass it by unknowingly.

Something flashed which Ami quickly passed by until she thought she saw something in it. Scrolling back up she looked intently on the data. Her eyes lit up as she looked over the information. No doubt about it. This explained a lot.

Grabbing her communicator Ami almost pressed the button to call the other scouts. Then a gut feeling told her that she shouldn't. Looking back at what she discovered her conscious started bothering her. How would she feel if what she was doing was being done to her instead? She switched off the communicator and switched on the tracking device for the wiretap she had placed on Sailor Venus. It beeped loud and clear showing her location.

Carrying Artemis on her shoulder Mina walked to her house. After the long visit at the hotel Sailor Venus exited the hotel the same way she went in. The security people announced on the walkie-talkies that she had indeed departed. She jumped up to the roof of a nearby building, leaping from roof to roof she made her way to the place where Artemis had waited faithfully for her.

She updated him on what had happened during her meeting with Shawn and the job offer he had proposed to her. Artemis was surprised and felt she should go through with it while Mina was not so sure if that would be the wisest course of action. The debate continued all the way to the front door of her house. Turning the doorknob the twosome quieted down as they entered.

"Mom! I'm home!" ,she announced.

The voice of her mother was heard from the kitchen.

"Where have you been? I was starting to get worried about you."

Entering the kitchen she prepared to hug her mother when the sight of Ami sitting at the dinner table surprised her. She stopped and looked curiously at the petite teen hoping that this visit was to be of a social nature.

"Ami's been waiting for you for some time now." ,her mother informed her.

Ami tried to look into Mina's eyes but the normal sparkling personality was not in her expression. In fact Ami would not even look at her. She kept her head down looking at her hands Even if she hadn't noticed that aspect of her body language, the shaking of Ami's clasped hands against her school uniforms blue skirt were the surest sign that there something was wrong. Her mothers though was too busy preparing the evening meal to notice Ami's changed condition.

"Can we talk in private?" ,Ami asked still not looking at her.

She agreed and the threesome moved from the kitchen to her bedroom. Closing the door Mina pressed her ear against the wall to make sure the conversation wasn't being overheard by her mother. Confident there was no eavesdropping Mina walked over to her friend while Artemis stood guard at the door.

Ami tried to raise her head up to look at her friend but had difficulty doing so. This was going to be very hard for her to do.

"Are you in some sort of trouble?" ,Mina finally asked.

"Yes...or at least I will be." ,Ami choked out.

She forced herself to look at Mina in the eyes. There was no way she could escape this and still be able to live with herself.

"You see I've discovered the truth about you and Shawn." ,she finally admitted," Now that I have I wish I had missed it."

Ami pulled out her mini-computer and began to press a few buttons. Handing it over to Mina it showed Shawn's back to the camera with his head turned to the camera and a hand extended outward to block its view. His body trying to form a barrier between himself and another person. Blonde hair and the tiniest section of a blue skirt were the only visible signs.

"Granted there isn't much to go on here but once I discovered this picture on the web I was soon able to find others as well."

Pushing another button the mini computer started a slide show. Every few seconds a new picture would be shown of Shawn and a girl. In each photo he tried to hide the girls identity but part of her was always visible. Several shots showed blonde hair and sometimes a red bow.

"From the composite of these pictures I compared the women with your known body structure and according to the computer there was a 93 probability of you being this women."

Feeling her face becoming flush Mina tried to pretend that this was all just a coincidence. Ami then plaid her trump card. One final picture taken from a newspaper.

The picture wasn't professionally done but the image was clear enough. The picture showed Mina in her volleyball uniform from her days in England and Shawn giving her a high five slap then another of the pair hugging. Both were smiling widely while the caption on the newspaper told of the teams volleyball victory.

"From what I've been able to gather so far it appeared you two were very close when you were in England as Sailor V. If you weren't why would he have been at your game and with you afterwards? Why all these shots of the two of you? I won't try to conject just how close the two of you were because it's none of my business but there is more to the story than this obviously. I'm guessing that something happened between you two, something you don't want to talk about, maybe a fight. That is why since it was announced that he was coming here you've been so distant to all of us. That is the reason why you got angry with Rei after the incident at the Laff Factory, and that is going to be the reason you'll be mad at me too for discovering the truth. I'm sorry, but now I have to tell the others what I know. I know you're going to think of me as a back stabbing Judas and I can only hope that you can find it in your heart to forgive me. I came here first so you'd know what I did so you wouldn't find out from the others first. I felt you deserved that much. After all if the situation was turned around with me and Greg that is how I would feel."

Unable to continue her confession Ami wiped her tears away becoming still and waited for the reaction of the friend she came to see hoping that she would still consider her a friend after sharing this news with her.

Mina turned her head to Artemis seeking any advice to this situation. He looked back and shrugged his shoulders. He had already told Mina how he felt but if she wasn't ready to tell Ami he wouldn't intervene and she knew it. The stress she was feeling was becoming too much to bear alone and she was tired of carrying the burden. Her secret had been discovered and perhaps now was the time to stop facing it alone.

She took a deep breath then exhaled.

"Ami...I'm sorry. Please forgive me. I should have told you about this long before now. I didn't mean for this to get as out of hand as it did." ,she choked out

Her friend looked up with her still tear stained eyes seeing the expression of sadness on Mina's face. For the first time since this adventure began she looked a little relieved.

"Got to hand it to you Ami, if you weren't a scout you'd make a great detective. Your right, those pictures were of the two of us. You see he was my boyfriend."


	3. Problems in Paradise

CHAPTER 3: PROBLEMS IN PARADISE

After comforting each other, the two sailor scouts sat on Mina's bed to discuss the situation further. Ami was relieved that Mina bared no ill will towards her and Mina began to feel better being able to talk to somebody else about what she was going through and what happened in her past.

"You see Ami this all happened when I was in England. As you know, my father was transferred there for a while and I was fighting the negaverse as Sailor V. Anyway, that was when I met Shawn. I remember it was soon after our arrival. The company my father was going to work for was having a party to celebrate his arrival. While the adults were mingling, I decided to look around and saw some people in a corner of the room setting up speakers, microphones, lights. I went up to this one guy, he was kind of cute, and started chatting with him. He guessed that I was the daughter of the guy they were having the party for and I said I was. We must have talked for half an hour"

"I'm assuming that was Shawn."

Mina nodded her head in confirmation.

" Well Shawn said that there was going to be a show there that night by The Laff Factory. I thought he was just one of those roadies who fix up stages for the stars so I had a nice conversation with him. It wasn't until later that I found out he was actually part of the show. You should have seen him Ami, he was so funny. Actually, they were all funny but I could not keep my eyes off him. Sometimes when one of the other performers were on the stage I'd sneak a peek to where he was and if he saw me he'd give a wink, or a little wave. Sometimes when he was on the stage I could have sworn that he was doing things just for my benefit, then again maybe it was just my imagination because he was such a hunk. The show was over a couple of hours later. When they left, I thought I would never see Shawn again. Then he came back a few minutes later claiming that a microphone had been left behind but it was a ruse so he could see me. He gave me 4 free tickets to The Laff Factory as a welcoming gift to England."

"That was sweet of him. So you became sweethearts at The Laff Factory."

"No, actually it happened a couple of days after the party. It was the day after my first battle in England with The Negaverse. I won but got busted up pretty well. I didn't have a chance to recover from the battle when I went to school the next day. I had fallen asleep in class and got detention, plus a bad test score and my mood wasn't the best. The final blow was when it rained outside and I had forgotten all my bad weather gear. It was late, I was still tired, cold, hungry, and miserable, it was raining and I had no way to get home without getting soaked. I probably cried worse than Serena ever had. I was just being a big baby.

Mina's head bent down. As she began to tell the story, her mind began to picture the way the tale happened. She remembered the image of her sitting on the front steps of her school under the awning while a thunderstorm deluged the ground. The emotions she went through were still felt strongly even after all this time. In her vision, her knees were drawn to her face with her arms wrapped around them. Figures passed to and fro on the sidewalk. Sometimes a couple would snuggle under an umbrella, which added to her depression for in this weather Artemis wouldn't come unless her life was in danger. She buried her head into her knees and began to sob uncontrollably.

"Mina? Is that you?" ,came a concerned male voice.

Pulling her head up she wiped away her tears to see who was talking to her. Down on one knee she saw Shawn looking at her with concern.

"You all right?"

Offering his hand Shawn helped Mina to her feet. There was embarrassment on Mina's part that she had behaved like such a baby.

"He offered me his raincoat which was too big for me but it did cover everything and then some. He offered to take me home but I was concerned that he was going to get wet now."

"That's all right. People think I'm all wet anyway" ,he joked.

Bringing the umbrella inches away from his head and tilting it so it would equally protect the young lady head as the raincoat did the rest of her body, the pair moved out of the awning, into the storm.

"As he held me I could tell how strong he was, yet there also a wonderful gentle nature to his touch. He was determined to see that I didn't get wet even though I could feel his back was soaked. He would crack jokes and I started feeling myself getting over my depression. Even the jokes that were incredibly lame or corny were done in a way that I still would laugh even in spite of myself. For the first time since I had arrived in England, I didn't feel so alone. I remembered how soft his shoulder felt when I leaned my head against his. I wished that time could have stood still at that very moment with just the two of us in that rain holding onto each other. When we got to my house, I didn't want him to leave but of course, he had to get to work. He waved at me as he walked down the steps and I waved back. I still remember how he looked at me standing at the window and started doing a dance down the middle of the sidewalk. People looked at him as if he was crazy. He wasn't crazy, he was just a little...flaked. "

Shawn pulled out a portable CD player from his dresser drawer. Putting the earphones on he looked around for the CD he wanted to play among the selection he had brought on this tour. When he found what he was looking for he opened up the disc and put it into his player. As the music started to play, he laid down on his back on the bed to relax to the soft sounds of the music.

The music had a slow, sad beat to it when Shawn closed his eyes. With the immediate world taken away from him voluntarily, he began to float into a dream world of his creation. In it, he remembered an earlier time. Simpler, less hectic, less confusing, more satisfying. He remembered a first time.

He was there to do a show at some high society home. The group he performed with was hired to entertain the gallery with their unique brand of comedy. How many shows had he performed to that point? More than he cared to count. It was just another night, another show, another aristocratic function with high society who thought they were better than he was. Still the money they would be making that night spent just as well as money from anybody else. It was business as usual...until he met her.

Even in a crowd she stood out with her golden blonde hair tied in a ponytail with a big red bow and a walk that made her look like she was floating, but what first drew him was that smile. The ways that smile caused her entire face to beam. He tried to continue working on getting the portable stage ready but her presence made his ability to concentrate difficult at best. When she came over, she didn't have the arrogant, superior attitude he had received from other high society gatherings. She was kind, gentle, and charming. She was easy to talk to and when she blushed at his comments concerning how pretty she was, he felt his heart being taken from him. When the show started, he continued to look her way, sometimes on stage, other times when he was off, and he continued to marvel at this perfection of nature in body and soul. He didn't want the night to end even if he could only admire her from a distance.

When the show was over, he tried to stall as long as he could so he could continue to talk with her as the others were putting their equipment away. When he was told they had to leave his heart began to feel heavy but the job was over and the others wanted to go home. He got halfway to the van when he decided to do something crazy. The group had already been paid and the show was over so they couldn't be fired. He went back under the ruse of locating some missing equipment. Fortune smiled on him with his being able to find Mina so quickly. He gave her tickets to a future show that he had kept in his wallet. It was a perk of employment but until then one he had never had a use for. He told her where the building was and she made a remark about how close The Laff Factory it was to her school. In his rush, however he forgot to ask exactly where her school was.

The next few days he checked some of the local schools near The Laff Factory. Though she knew her school was close to where he worked there were several in various directions a short distance from where he worked. He found the school during a heavy rainstorm. Crying on the school steps, her face was hidden but the large red bow was impossible to miss. It had to be her. Carefully he approached her since he was not sure that she even remembered him from the show even as he called her name. Raising her head he could see her reddened eyes yet even in this state she possessed the ability to take his heart away. How could he turn away such a beautiful creature when she needed help, especially since he considered himself a gentleman?

Taking her home, he was amazed by how trusting she was. There was no objection as he held her close to him, a man she had only met once. He wanted to talk seriously with her but the words he sought would not come out of his mouth so he went to what he knew best, humor. With each laugh from her Shawn began to feel more comfortable with her and visa versa but the trip ended before he could find out more about her. Arriving at her apartment, he said his good-byes and left. He looked up to see her waving good-bye and in an instant of inspiration, he began to do his impersonation of "Singing in the Rain" which enticed one final laugh from her from the window. Even the resulting pneumonia he got was worth the privilege of the time they had spent together.

He would stop by her school almost every day he could when the bell rang. Most of the time she was there to meet him, occasionally she was not. Sometimes it was due to volleyball practice once the season started but other times she would say that something came up that she couldn't get out of. He took it all in stride. After all, there were times when he could not see her because he was doing a road show. He just would be glad for the next day to come so they could be together.

The parents were not as trusting of him as Mina was. It took a lot of time and effort before they would trust Shawn with their only child. An entertainer's reputation was not one of wholesomeness and their concern for their daughter was understandable. One of the parents and sometimes both would chaperone them when they went out even for some ice cream for the first few months. Even when the parents had finally let the two share time alone the father gave him a stern warning that he was expected to treat Mina with total respect and the consequences of what would happen if he failed to obey. He caught more than a few angry glances from the parents whenever he tried to do so much as hold her hand when they first dated together. The pair tried to work their way around the stern parents by carefully just holding each other pinkies when the parents could not see it. It became their secret signal and a way of showing their affection for each other. In time, Shawn used it on stage to signal to Mina that he knew she was there. When he would be introduced to the crowd, he would bow in the honor of the stage. As he came up, he would wave his little pinkie as the signal. At the end of the show, as the house lights came back up Mina would pretend to stretch and flash him the return signal. It became a private joke between them that nobody else knew about.

The time Mina was in his life were the happiest he had ever known. She was able to bring out things in him that he never thought possible. In the past, he used laughs to help him get out of uncomfortable situations, especially social ones. It was this self defense mechanism that eventually brought him into comedy. With Mina, though he didn't feel the need to be "on". Even when he started to feel uncomfortable, she had a way of letting him know without saying a word that everything was all right. He didn't have to be "The Flake" to impress her. She was more interested in Shawn Foley.

The people he knew told him that he was being foolish since there were so many obstacles in the way of any sort of relationship. While agreeing that there could be difficulty those thought left him the moment he saw her and he reveled in the moment.

Those moments came crashing down her last night in England. While knowing this day was coming for some time, it didn't make its arrival less difficult and awkward. The two were spending one final night together trying to find words to say good-bye that wouldn't come. It hurt him to see Mina so miserable so he went to his bag of humor. Make jokes, help her to laugh, and try to stop her tears even though he was doing the same thing inside. The humor didn't have the effect he had expected. Instead of relieving the pressure, it made the situation worse until Mina reacted in a way he had never seen before. She was genuinely angry with him for making light of the situation. At first, he tried to defend his actions and tried to apologize but it didn't help the situation. In retrospect, he knew she didn't mean the things she said to him, she was simply upset. At the time, though he made the mistake of escalating the situation. Feeling he was being unfairly accused he verbally struck back and said things that he didn't mean. When she ran away, he should have run after her to apologize but he didn't. It wasn't until much later when he couldn't sleep and he was able to calm down that he realized what a fool he had been. He knew what needed to be done. Getting dressed he made his way to the apartment where she lived as fast as he could. The sun was just beginning to rise when he arrived to knock on the door. He rang the bell repeatedly only to be answered in silence. He peered in the window but the curtains blocked any indication of what was inside.

"Please, don't let it end like this. Not without her knowing how I really feel." ,he prayed.

Shawn kept ringing the doorbell until the resident manager came out of his apartment to confirm what he feared. That they had left just a short time before his arrival.

A part of Shawn felt like it had died. An important part of his life had been ripped away and he was the culprit. He ran back to his flat and wrote a long letter of apology to Mina hoping that she would know what he felt. After putting it in the envelope, he realized he didn't know where she lived in Tokyo. He sent it to the apartment complex hoping that the post office had a forwarding address. The letter was returned saying that such information had not been provided. He tried to call her but discovered that the phone number was unlisted. At every turn to find her he was thwarted and with each failure he fell into a deeper depression. A depression that lasted for a long time.

As the final song on the CD faded out Shawn opened his eyes to see Gator looking down at him. His friend looked down with amusement as the earphones were taken off Shawn's head.

"Thinking about that blonde angel of yours again, aren't you." ,he joked.

Shawn didn't want to admit that his friend was right.

"I was just sitting here trying to relax. Today was a bit crazy." ,he lied.

Gator laughed aloud in his booming voice.

"Don't lie to me Flake, you've never been very good at it. The only time you ever play that CD is when you've got Mina on the brain. Can't say that I blame you though. She was a cute one to be sure. If I had been 10 years younger, I would have made a play for her myself. Anyway, the others are down in the restaurant and wondered if you'd like to get a bite to eat."

While the meal he had earlier had satisfied him he thought it might not be such a bad idea to go downstairs anyway. Having traveled back and forth promoting the tour it had been a while since he had a chance to shoot the breeze and just have fun with his fellow performers.

"...and that's the whole story. We fought, I said some things that I wish I hadn't and never got the chance to apologize for it. I know he wasn't trying to be mean, he just wanted to have me smile again only I took it the wrong way and blew up because it was breaking my heart to be leaving him. When we came back to Japan, I kept trying to write him but every time I tried, I couldn't find the words to say what was in my heart. Only Artemis knew of this little secret, until now. After a while I gave up trying to contact him because I thought he had moved on and found somebody else but I never got over loving him." ,Mina reflected.

Taking a tissue from nearby she wiped her teary eyes and blew her nose. The discussion had brought forth a catharsis within her that she had never thought possible. With each word, Mina felt a burden being lifted from her shoulders. There was no need to hide the past any longer and the more she had shared with Ami, the more she wanted to tell.

Her counterpart listened attentively to each detail without comment, wondering how difficult it must have been like for her to feel like she couldn't share this with anybody. To keep the whole affair secret. On the surface, she always gave the impression of an open and friendly person, an open book to all. The truth though was she only showed the world what she wanted to. Mina was perhaps the most private of the sailor scout, more concerned with helping others than with her own happiness. If Shawn had not come to Japan, which had caused the trauma in her life it would have been doubtful that she would have ever let her secret out on her own.

Taking a deep breath Mina continued the discussion, talking about the things that had happened to her since Shawn's arrival. The meeting at the Laff Factory, her chance encounter with him as she came home from school, the discussion the pair had in Shawn's room, and his request for help. .

"...but even with all we discussed I wasn't ready for the favor he asked. He gave me this photograph and asked me to find...me."

She produced a photo that Shawn had given her. It showed Mina and Shawn together on horseback. One of the horses Mina rode confidently, on the other Shawn's face was one of total terror, not an exaggerated comedy fear face but a genuine fear that at any moment his horse would do something he couldn't stop.

The announcement took a few moments to understand. It took a few seconds more for the announcement to sink in to the surprised Ami. Once over the surprise and shock though a wide grin crossed the petite scout's face.

"That's great! I'm happy for you." ,Ami congratulated.

"No Ami, you don't understand. He wants to see **_me!" ,_**Mina stressed.

"Right, he wants to see you." ,Ami agreed but looked with curiosity upon her friend sensing that more was meant by the statement than she was comprehending.

"No you don't get it Ami. His image of what I am is almost two years old now. He wants to get back together and have things be as they were when we were in England. There is no way that can happen. I've got responsibilities now as a Sailor Scout. He's got responsibilities too as a performer. He's only going to be in town for a few days longer and then he'll be gone again. I don't think I could go through having us apart again and having my heart broken again. We can't possibly have a long distance relationship. You know yourself just how hard it is. How often do you see Greg? I know how you miss him when he's not around. You are the only person who could know what I'm going through."

She nodded her head in agreement to Mina's points. This conversation dredged up memories of a conversation she once had with Lita. It was when Greg had returned to Tokyo because of a vision he had of the negaverse returning to gather the seven rainbow crystal carriers again. She was throwing every excuse she knew of why she couldn't be more than a friend with Greg, but Lita saw through all the transparent alibi's to the ultimate reason. Fear of losing Greg had prevented her from admitting the way she felt about him. In time, both were able to admit how deeply they felt about each other. Now she saw an opportunity to do for another what had been done for her.

" Yes I do know what its like. The loneliness of not having him here, just talking to him via E-mail can never satisfy talking face to face or being held. I'm lucky if I get to see him a weekend every other months because of his fathers constant moving, or if I'm lucky I'll get a phone call a week just so I can hear his voice. It's not exactly the type of relationship that I would recommend to anyone."

Fixing Mina with a hard look, Ami continued.

"Even with all that though I wouldn't trade the time I've spent with Greg for anything. As difficult as it has been, with all the problems and obstacles thrown in our path, I've cherished every moment we have together. When he use to leave I would wonder if he'd find someone else who because they are closer to him, and he can see them everyday, that he would love with somebody else and lose interest in me. The only thing that thinking those thoughts did was make me depressed until he contacted me again. The fear had not come true and eventually I made the choice that I wouldn't allow that fear to cripple what I've got with Greg. What happens when we're not together is something I can't control. The only thing I can control is the time I do have with him, and those times are very special to me."

What had started as a discussion of Mina's problem was turning into a conversation about Ami and Greg. This wasn't what Ami wanted to do. She wanted to help if she could with Mina's problem. Once realizing this she brought the discussion back to its proper focus.

"Then again what has worked for me may not work for you, that I can't tell you. You must ask yourself that question. How much do you still love him? Is it enough to take the chance of contacting him again? Is it worth the possible risk of being rejected now or later? Is it worth wondering for the rest of your life what could have happened if you decide not to pursue this? Could you live with not knowing the answers?"

Becoming still Ami realized she had said enough. Anything beyond this point would only serve to confuse the already bewildered scout further. She sat patiently and waited for Mina to make the next move. Running her finger through golden locks of hair Mina's eyes spoke volumes of the uncertainty in her heart. She had hoped that she didn't go too far with her challenge and that it would not be held against her, especially to the point of losing this friendship.

"What should I do Ami?" ,she finally question asked.

"So do you think he'll show up?" ,asked Susan Hawk

"10 pounds says that he doesn't." , Brian Coe wagered.

"I'm not taking any part of that bet." , Terri Hearst added with absolute certainty in her voice.

"Momma didn't raise a fool." ,Susan agreed when she stopped as her attention had been drawn elsewhere.

Walking through the restaurant with his head looking down to the floor Gator worked his way towards the table. Taking a seat, he grabbed the menu, which had been placed, on top of his plate.

"So his royal highness decided against slumming with the common folk.", Brian stated without even attempting to hide his disgust.

"Flake was asleep so I thought I'd let him be. He still has that first pitch at the ballgame tonight and he has two more appearances after that. Poor guy will be lucky if he's back before midnight."

The comment was a half-truth. While Shawn was awake when he was in the room, Shawn did want to take a nap before the evenings activities required his services. Gator also knew about the rest of the nighttime rounds that were required. One of which would include a banquet where he could eat. Besides the logical reasons for staying in his room and sleeping, he wanted to be close to a phone just in case he got a call he was praying to receive against all logic of it happening.

The others didn't show such compassion for their fellow performer.

"**_Aww_** isn't it such a shame that he's got to work so hard. It must so difficult. Working his fingers to the bone shaking all those hands.", Susan ridiculed.

"Oh and don't forget how exhausting it must be posing for all those photographs too. Sitting there smiling and waving as the paparazzi snap their cameras. Oh the poor dear must be worn to a frazzle." ,Terri adding her opinion to the conversation without the slightest sound of sympathy in her voice.

" Being famous does have it drawbacks you know. Girls chasing you everywhere you go trying to kiss you and tearing your clothes off. Being idolized as a sex symbol. It must be an incredibly hard life.", Brian continued on the attack.

Gator continued to look at the menu trying his best to ignore the conversation. It was old ground and he did not want to go through it again yet he also couldn't just let them attack somebody who was not even there to defend himself.

"Why can't you just give the guy a break?" ,he asked while still not daring to look in their eyes.

"Why do you keep defending the guy day after day? How can you just sit there and take it Gator? He's stabbed you in the back more than he has any of us. You should be as angry with him as we are, maybe more so.", Brian pressed.

An interesting comment he thought. One that had never been expressed before. It was a strong enough remark for him to lay his menu down and follow the discussion more intensely. He focused his attention on Brian.

"Et Tu Bruti? I don't see any knife wounds in my back. So how has Flake stabbed me? In what way has he stabbed me." ,he wanted to know.

Nodding his head Brian began to state his case.

"When we started this tour you were the star of the show and we all accepted that fact. You are the last remaining member of the original Laff Factory troupe. You've been there since its inception. For more than 10 years, you had paid your dues to the team. Then we get to America and suddenly Flake is starting to get the appearances you should be getting. Suddenly he's jet setting everywhere and sometimes we're lucky if he graces us with his appearance, a half an hour before the show starts. Then once the show is over its more television for him, maybe another plane ride for an appearance in another city, or country."

Listening intently, Gator didn't say a word as Brian listed even more grievances against Shawn Foley. The girls then added their own perspectives on the situation with their own prosecution of the events that had taken place during their tour. Until all had finished speaking did Gator address their objections.

"Let's look at things in a different light shall we? Yes, I have been with the troupe a long time and let me tell you, sometimes being the top dog isn't all its cracked up to be. While we all work as a team many times when the show flops its the top dog who gets the blame whether its deserved or not. I am flattered that you think so highly of me but the fact is that Flake has earned what has happened to him for better or worse."

The others snickered at the remark but became still when Gator fixed them with a strong look of anger.

"He's been working very hard this entire trip. When we came to the United, States I was suppose to do that television talk show but I was too sick remember? I had a fever of 102, coughing up everything but my socks, dizzy spells, you name it. I asked Flake to fill in for me and he didn't complain, he just did it as a favor for me and did a great job. Brian, remember when you complained about going to that radio station in Florida at five in the morning saying that nobody would be listening. Flake wound up doing it because you didn't want to and he got the press. Terri, in Los Angeles you wanted to tour the movie studios hoping that maybe you'd be put in pictures after the tour ended and you asked Flake to fill in for you at the hospital. Well he did and the paper talked about what he did. Susan..."

Before he could embarrass her with what Shawn had done for her Susan Hawk put up her hands signaling for Gator to stop. Gator nodded knowing that the point had been made and that she realized how the events have taken place.

"This entire tour has been very hard on him physically and mentally. He's done more for putting this troupe on the map than any of us on this trip. There are times when I wonder how he can keep going without falling asleep on his feet. Now he's been even more of a wreck as we've been getting closer to this Japan show. I don't think I need to explain why he's this way."

"Don't tell me he's still got a thing for that Mina girl." , Heather asked not believing what she was saying.

"He said he was over her now.", Brian added.

Gator took a long sip of his drink to wet his throat. Rolling his tongue along his lips to get the remaining droplets of cool liquid he put his glass down.

"And do you think he would confide in any of you after the prank you pulled on him in Los Angeles? Writing that little note saying that Mina was in San Francisco and wanted to see him? He caught the first flight out of LAX, almost getting a cold from standing in the rain for hours waiting for her to show up. Then when he found out the truth, that you had set him up. It's a miracle that he didn't flatten you three, and I would have helped. After all that do you think, he'd trust any of you. Mina meant a lot to him."

Finishing the drink Gator looked intensely at the ice that was at the bottom of the glass. He took a deep breath and sighed.

"You don't know what it was like for Flake when he first started. Oh, he was all right as a performer. After all, if he weren't, he wouldn't have hired by the troupe in the first place. As a person, though he was rather shy and reserved. When he wasn't performing, he liked to keep to himself. At first, I thought it was because like me, he was from a foreign country and felt like an outsider, but instead it was because he was simply not comfortable unless he was on-stage. Only there did he feel confident in whatever he did."

Gator stopped his speech when their waitress came over for their dinner orders. Each ordered, not bothering to continue the conversation while she was there. Receiving the orders, the waitress bowed her thanks and left. Gator continued.

"After Mina came into his life Flake started changing, it was defiantly a change for the better. He started becoming open with the rest of the group. In the past, he'd just change clothes and then leave after the show was done, after Mina showed up, he started hanging around and wanting to do things with the rest of us. He started becoming more confident off stage. When you would see him, it would take less than 30 seconds to know if he had seen Mina that day or not. The differences were that strong."

"You make it sound like she was the only women in the world for him. There are other fish in the sea." ,Heather suggested.

"You say that only because you never saw them together. If you had then you would have thought that at least for Flake, she was. I still remember the day she left. Flake told me about what had happened the previous night. I had seen him high, low, and every mood in between but never before or since had I ever seen him so totally devastated. It was a scary time. For almost a month, he barely ate or slept. He lost almost 20 pounds. Sometimes his eyes would simply look out into space. I was scared he was going to try something very dumb when he was like this. The only time he'd come out of his flat would be if he had to do a show and I made darn sure he showed up. The shows started becoming therapy for him. All the emotions he was feeling started coming out in the routines. At times, his characters were rather macabre but he was getting the pain out of his system. Even after all that though he still carried quite a torch for her in his heart."

"So do you think he'll find her? I mean if she is the beauty that he's boasted then I'm sure she's got another boyfriend." ,Susan inquired.

"I've tried to tell him that believe me. When it comes to Mina, he just doesn't think logically. I was concerned about what might happen to him when we got the Japan. If she doesn't call him he might get some closure on this finally, or it could depress him even worse than before. What scares me is what might happen if she actually manages to contact him. I'm not sure how he'll handle it."

Shawn continued to lie down on his bed. His body was trying to rest while his mind continued to remember Mina. Sleep was impossible but he was willing to settle for rest before the flurry of activity that was to consume his evening.

His rest was disturbed by the ringing of the phone on the nightstand near him. On the third ring, he picked it up. Leaning on his side, he cradled the phone between the pillow on the bed and his ear.

"Hello." ,he said sluggishly.

"Mr. Foley. This is security. We have a young lady at the back door who wishes to see you. She wasn't on the pass list but she knew the password and said it was important

" Does this person have a name?"

" Yes. Mina Aino."

Waiting at the back door Mina watched as the security guard continued talking on the phone. With each second she began to second-guess her decision to come here. When she had left the house with Ami, she felt certain as to the course of action she would take. She would go to Shawn and admit that she was just as much at fault for the day they broke up as he was. That she wanted to know if Shawn truly felt the same way about her that she had felt towards him all this time. To see if that after all this time if the two could still have something together.

She looked upwards to where the other Sailor Scouts stood by with Artemis. It gave her a sense of protection to have somebody she trusted nearby. After coming to grips with her feelings on the subject Mina decided it was time for her secret to be exposed to the others. Even with Ami's help, it was not the easiest things she had ever done. Breaking down in tears on a few occasions, she stood before the other scouts to tell the whole story. Once the air had been cleared, she apologized for having kept this secret from them, plus her behavior during the previous few weeks towards them.

There was not a single scout who could find anything wrong with what Mina had done. Each had been through difficult relationships, some worse than others. They made it clear that they would be willing to help their friend in any way they could.

Their support led them to the roof of a building across the alley from the hotel where Shawn and the troupe stayed. Physically there was nothing they could do for her. That didn't stop Sailor Mars from praying to the Gods for success. The others tried to channel their good will hoping that it would make a difference in Mina's quest.

Mina nerves caused her to fidget with her hair. Softly pulling on her golden locks, she saw the guard put the phone down.

"Shawn will see you now.", the guard informed her.

Opening the back door another guard escorted Mina up the flights of stair. The stairs seemed a little steeper than before, the walk longer. She could start to hear footfalls above her. Growing louder their pace quickened, then the sounds got louder but less consistent. The guard positioned Mina behind him concerned for her protection in case the sounds were of someone who wasn't suppose to be there.

Finishing one of the flights of stairs the two looked up where they both saw Shawn running down the steps at a two or 3 step pace. When Mina's and Shawn's eyes met, he started to slow down. The last two steps to the floor landing were taken slow and cautiously where he hesitated.

Moving around the security guard Mina wondered why he had stopped. He had come more than halfway around the world, tried so hard to contact her. Now at the decisive moment he froze. It befuddled her.

That was until she looked into his eyes, the expression of disbelief that she was really here in front of him. The total shock of the situation. The biggest expression though was of uncertainty.

She appraised the situation a little longer. In the past, he had never hesitated to wrap his arms around her when the pair had gotten together yet he was clearly unsure what to do. Was he concerned that if he hugged her now would she run away? That if he didn't hug her and she expected it would that give a false indication that he wasn't interested in her. He looked at her hoping for a clue as to her mood and what would be the best course of action.

Mina didn't like the tenseness of the situation. If there was any hope for the twosome to get past this awkward stage somebody would have to take the initiative, then again if there was anything Mina Aino had in abundance, it was initiative.

After the thousands of miles traveled by Shawn, it was Mina who traveled the final few feet forward to wrap her arms around him. Without another moment wasted, she felt his arms wrap around her tightly with a deep exhale from his lips. It had been so long since she had been held in his arms she had almost forgotten how wonderful it felt.

"Oh Mina! It really is you!" ,he finally groaned out in a whisper.

"Shawn!" ,was the only response she was able to utter allowing herself to become lost in this moment.

She didn't know how long the two held each other, she also didn't care. She could easily allow herself to get lost in this feeling forever. The sweet bliss to be held by him again and very secure in the knowledge that he still cared for her so much.

"I'm so sorry Mina. I'm so sorry for what happened." ,she heard in whispers

The words brought her back to reality. While she had been enjoying the moment, it became apparent that Shawn was still recalling the last time they had seen each other. He was making good the plan he had discussed with her when she was Sailor Venus. He was trying to right the wrong of two years ago.

"It's all right Shawn. It was as much my fault as anyone's. I'm sorry for any pain that I have caused you. ", she admitted.

"You had every right to be mad at me. If I hadn't behaved like a horses…",he continued to confess before Mina cut him off by placing a finger against his lips.

"Please, just hold me. Just hold me and never let me go." ,she implored

She could feel his arms tightening even more around her, more than willing to comply with her wishes. Feeling a sensation of floating she reveled in the impassioned hold of the man she still held a flame for in her heart. She went to step a little closer before she realized that her feet were suspended from the ground. In his hold, he had picked her up off the ground with no indication of strain.

When he finally did put her down they separated looking at each other. Shawn placed the palms of his hands against both sides of her cheeks, his thumbs rubbing away the tears that had welled up and fallen from her eyes.

"I didn't think it was humanly possible but you're even more beautiful than I remember." ,Shawn stated with total sincerity.

Flattered at the statement Mina blushed and looked down in embarrassment, which made her look even more adorable to Shawn. He softly lifted her head up again and began to move his lips to hers.

"Oh my god. Is he going to kiss me? Please let it be true. I'd die of embarrassment if I was wrong." ,she thought to herself wanting to show just how she felt as well.

Her impression of the situation was indeed correct. Slowly, carefully in case there had been any sign of resistance from her he moved towards her lips. Mina closed her eyes to feel the full impact of the forthcoming kiss tilting her head to the right while his hand cupped against the back of her head.

"FLAKE! WHERE IN BLAZES ARE YOU! FLAKE!" ,a voice bellowed from above.

The sound startled the lovers who turned their heads toward the noise. as Gator worked his way down the stairs. Turning the corner to their floor, he saw Shawn at the bottom looking at him with great agitation, which surprised him. Shawn rarely showed that sort of emotion but he could tell that he walked in at a bad moment.

"Hi Gator.", she greeted while mentally cursing him for the timing of his arrival.

Gator cocked his head to the left side unsure of what he was seeing.

"Mina? Is that really you?" ,he asked.

"In the flesh."

"Uhhhhh. Nice to see you again.", Gator replied but his voice didn't sound like he totally believed what he was saying.

"Did you want something Gator?", Shawn inquired.

Gator pointed to his watch

"We've got to get going. Ball Game? First pitch? Ring a bell?"

Sailor Mercury continued to look through the building via her VR Visor. Mercury tried to keep her composure as she answered. In her visor, two small white dots appeared to indicate the position of items and their numbers.

In her visor, Mercury saw the two white dots starting to merge into one. She turned off the visor wanting to give Mina some privacy in this moment through being discrete. While the odds were high that the two were in an embrace it could easily be that the two dots were simply the fact of the two facing each other in a direct line to her visor giving the appearance of only one person when there was in fact two.

After a couple of minutes, Mercury resumed her transmission where the two were still close together. As the scene unfolded before her, Mercury felt a sense of accomplishment. The one dot continued to hold its form. She wondered if Lita felt the same satisfaction when she once played a major role in her admitting her deepest emotions about Greg. For Mina and Shawn this was just a first step but a very important one. Another white dot became visible as it came down diagonally on her visor. She saw the single dot once again become two separate ones.

Mercury thought through the options available to her. If there was danger, she was certain Venus would try to send a signal indicating her distress. However, there was still the danger of having her other identity compromised if she did so. Maybe the best course of action would be to wait and see what happened next. On the other hand, if there was danger, waiting would put Mina in jeopardy when she needed her friend the most.

Looking down she saw the security personnel, which reminded her of the security presence around the area. As the three blips of light moved upstairs sideways, she deduced that they were on the floor where the performers were staying. If there were any danger, surely they would have reacted by now.

The moment made her realized just how vulnerable she was. If Mina had needed her, help she would have needed to contact the Sailor Scouts but it would have taken time for them to get there. In addition, the others were waiting for her to report about the situation with Mina.

Grabbing her communicator Sailor Mercury started pushing its buttons.

Walking with Shawn and Gator into their room, Mina listened to the pair make plans to sneak her into the groups limousine so she could be with Shawn as he made his scheduled appearance at the ballgame. Shawn mainly listened as Gator told him of a 'foolproof' plan to get the two of them together.

"Won't you get into trouble if we're caught?", she asked not wanting to be the cause of some calamity.

Gator smiled with a great deal of confidence in his mischievous smile.

"Trust the Gator will you. I've executed this plan quite a few times and haven't been caught yet. It's as simple as one, two, and three. First Flake gets into the limo as he's suppose to. Two I come running out shouting at the limo to stop. Three I claim you're suppose to accompany him tonight as his 'Special Event Coordinator'. Just hold the clipboard I've got, occasionally look down as if you're doing something important and look like you belong there. Flake has run this con for me a few times. Certainly its time for me to return the favor."

Gator grabbed a clipboard from the closet and held it out for Mina. Gator ran through the plan one more time.

The door to the room was knocked on. Shawn opened it expecting one of the other members of the group. To the surprise of all that is in the room, it was instead their host 'K'. Opening his mouth to state his intentions he stuttered when he saw Mina.

"What is this girl doing here?" ,'K' finally said as he became angry and indignant , "What is this girl doing in your room gentleman!"

Mina was about to address the man when Shawn leapt to her aid.

"Wait 'K'! It's not what you think! Let me explain. This is Mina. She is somebody I knew in England."

"A likely story, and how did you two meet." ,'K' responded not believing what he was hearing.

She stood by as Shawn gave a quick account of their tale. He talked quickly as if afraid that if he didn't do so he would be interrupted, that Mina would be at best thrown out, at worse arrested.

"...I know how this must look to you 'K'. You think she's just some groupie coming up to our room but you're wrong. She's my friend...actually more than a friend...I can't exactly explain what our relationship is like but when I found out she was here..."

"And how did she get up here? How did she just happen to know our password?"

"Sailor Venus was able to find her for me."

Rolling his eyes 'K' shook his head in skepticism of the tale he was hearing.

"And just how do you happen to know Sailor Venus? She isn't exactly somebody you can call from the phonebook. Look, if this is some sort of joke or comical routine this isn't the time for such foolishness. Look Shawn, we need to get going to the game and I'm sorry miss but you'll have to be escorted from the building."

"Perhaps this would help you believe Shawn? Sailor Venus asked me to return this you Shawn." ,Mina calmly spoke.

From her small purse, which she had brought with her, a photograph was produced. She handed it over to Shawn who in turn gave it to 'K' confidently. The sponsor looked at it intently. The girl in the photo looked younger than the one that stood before him now but there was no question the it was the same girl.

"That was the photo taken during our groups picnic." ,Shawn explained to 'K' ," Haven't been on a horse since then. So as you can see we have known each other for a while."

"That may be true Shawn but you know the rules. No unauthorized personnel on this floor. It is for your own protection. I am sorry miss, but you will need to be escorted from the building. Since you were obviously invited, there won't be any repercussions. As for you Shawn you need to head to the ball park.", 'K' instructed.

Anxiously Mina tried to think of a means to avoid being separated from Shawn again and the way he gazed into her eyes showed that he felt the same way.

"Can't Mina come with me? I'll be willing to take full responsibility for her. We have so much to talk about tonight. I can't tell you why but this is very important to me. Please 'K' I'm not asking... I'm begging you please. Nothing will happen, not because of what you would do to me but what her father would. I'm more scared of him than you." ,Shawn beseeched.

Looking carefully at the sponsor Mina began to worry that Shawn's passionate plea was falling on deaf ears. She saw Shawn looking for more to say that could sway his judgment.

"Look I've done everything you've asked of me since I've been here 'K'. You've changed the schedule I was suppose to follow, you've added things for me to do, each time you said it was business, and in the end not once did I refuse no matter how I truly felt just because you asked it of me. Well now, I am asking for something. I'm not asking for the world. I'm not asking for extra money or extra perks. I'm asking to be with Mina for a while. I am simply asking you to let me be with Mina. Am I really asking that much?"

'K' nodded in agreement as he looked into the eyes to see how important this was for Shawn. When he looked into Mina's eyes, a sweet, innocent gaze was returned. He realized that this person wasn't the usually groupie who would do anything to meet with their favorite stars. 'K' nodded in acceptance.

"All right, you can take her to the game but that's all. Before you go though I'm sure this young lady has parents who will also need to know about this. Last thing we need is some trash magazine claiming we're kidnapping somebody. I'll make arrangements with the limo drive so he'll know."

"So what's going on Mercury?" ,asked Sailor Moon unable to stand the suspense any longer.

"I'll tell you when I have something to tell."

"By the way Mercury, way to go. You did a great job getting those two together." ,Jupiter praised in a way that made Mercury blush.

"Well you can say I was able to learn from a great teacher." ,she reciprocated that caused the same shade of hue to come from Jupiter's cheeks as well.

"So how is it going? How long has she been inside?", asked Rei.

"She's been inside for half an hour. So far, so good I suppose but I can't tell what's going on. " , reported Sailor Mercury.

The back door of the hotel opened up. Sailor Mercury stopped talking to look at what was going on. The remaining scouts also looked down in curiosity.

Mina stepped out of the door...alone. This wasn't a good sign thought Mercury until she saw her smile. A few seconds later Shawn made his appearance through the door as he put on his jacket, his arm over Mina's shoulder and the pair began to walk together down the alleyway to the waiting limousine.

A feeling of accomplishment was felt in the heart of Sailor Mercury as the other scouts patted her on the back for a job well done. She began to tear up as she saw Mina look up to her and mouth out the words 'thank you'. Together they got into the limo and started to drive off.

There was nothing more to be gained by staying at the hotel so the Scouts moved away from the scene so the two reunited lovebirds could be alone.

The scouts began to leap from building to building with a lighter heart now, filled with adrenaline because of what had been accomplished. They were all overjoyed for their blonde haired friend.

In mid-flight between two of the buildings Sailor Mercury finally let out her feelings as she pumped a fist in the air in joyful triumph.

"YES!"

The Four Sisters saw everything that had transpired. Unobserved from another tall building next to where the scouts were, the quartet spied.

"I only counted four of those brats. Did anybody else see Sailor Venus anywhere?" ,Catsy queried her sisters.

The other sisters shook their heads from side to side.

"She might still observing the Laff Factory."

"Might is not good enough. We need to know for certain where all the scouts are so we can make our move if the opportunity presents itself. Avery, Prizma, you check out the Laff Factory and report what you find out. I'll keep following our prey. Birdy you will report what we've got so far to Rubeus. Move out." ,the eldest sister commanded.

They dispersed towards their respective destinations.

Inside the limousine, Mina and Shawn tried to catch on their pasts as the driver worked his way through traffic to the ballpark. Mina talked about how her life had changed since the last time they had been together. She talked about her new friends but made sure she didn't mention that her new friends were also the Sailor Scouts. School was also mentioned and how different it was from the school in England.

When he asked how well she was doing with the school volleyball team Mina surprised him by mentioning she wasn't playing competitively anymore. When asked why she simply said that she had too much to do in her life to fit it in but didn't rule out the possibility of going back to it someday. They recalled some of the games he watched her play. He was her biggest fan on and off the court and all this time later that hadn't changed.

Continuing the conversation Mina started to take mental notes and began to realize some of the changes in Shawn from the time the two were together in England. In height, he didn't seem as tall as he use to be. Of course, in two years she developed a growth spurt while at his age Shawn had reached the peak of his prominence. In addition, he appeared to be more serious than he use to remember. While occasionally still reaching into his bag of tricks for the witty comeback, he mostly remained silent, focusing on what was being said until there was nothing else for her to say.

"Well that pretty much everything on my side. So how does it feel to be a big star now." ,she asked Shawn.

Shawn looked excited as he opened his mouth ready to give a quick response without really thinking about it but stopped. His expression then changed from happy to sad as his mouth opened again before shutting up. Finally, he became quiet giving the matter quite a bit of thought before he spoke.

"In some ways it's been a blessing, in other ways it's been a curse. Ironically, many of the blessings and curses are one and the same. Its a blessing that when I walk down the street everybody knows who I am yet its also a curse because everybody knows who I am and they all seem to want my autograph. I just can't seem to get any privacy. Don't get me wrong Mina, I still get a kick out of signing autographs and it's a lot more fun to be noticed than ignored. Still I miss many of the things I use to be able to enjoy. Going to the movies, the mall, eating out, being able to actually enjoy a meal in a restaurant without interruption, even the simple pleasure of doing the things we use to do. Do you know that I've only had one day off in the last 2 months? We were all in Colorado in America. From the hotel in Denver, I could see the Rocky Mountains. All those mountains and I wanted to climb every one of them. Haven't done too much of that since I had left for England a couple of years earlier. One day I caught a break and both my appointments were canceled. I wanted to rent a car and drive to the base of this mountain I had heard about. I wanted to spend an entire afternoon climbing what they call The Devil's Thumb. It would have been wonderful. Just the mountain and myself. Feeling the wind against my face, sitting down at the summit in awe of the view. I thought about how lovely the area would be. I reveled in how wonderful it was to hear silence. Instead I had to stay in my hotel room for 'security reasons', eat room hotel food, watch TV, and do a lot of thinking."

Stopping his sentence bent his head down sadly.

"Especially a lot of thinking... I'm sorry. I didn't mean to ramble like that." ,he whispered.

Putting a hand on his thigh Mina gave an assuring warm smile.

"Hey it's OK. I want to hear everything you want to say. After all, you were willing to listen to me babble on. So what did you think about?"

Her gentle nature helped to draw Shawn out of the shell he was trying hide in. It was a talent that he appreciated in her when they were in England. It was one of the many qualities he missed once she had left.

"I thought about a lot of things but for the most part I kept thinking about you. Remembering everything we had together. Remembering the things we did together. Remembering your smile, the way you laughed even at some of my corniest jokes, the way you moved. Yes, I said it. Even back then, the way you walked turned my head. I kept wondering if you were doing well. Wondering if you were still angry with me for...you know. Wondering if... you ever found... somebody else." ,he spoke with each word becoming more difficult to say.

For a second he paused before asking the important question. He kept his head down looking at his hands, which were clasped in prayer.

"So did you?"

"Did I what?" ,Mina returned not sure she understood the question.

"Did you ever find somebody else? Do you have a boyfriend?"

"No." ,she said with a blushing smile that he didn't notice.

"I see. Is that because you simply haven't found the right man yet or is it because I hurt you so badly that you are afraid to try and have another relationship?" , he continued.

"Oh I've found the right man all right. I found him a long time ago. I was just too young and too foolish to notice it until it was too late when I pushed him out of my life."

The comment caught him by surprise. Turning and raising his head to finally see her expression the weight of his burden became lighter. He looked at her in a combination of amazement and disbelief.

" It still surprises me that nobody has at least tried to go out with you. I can't be the only person who can see how special you are."

" I'm equally surprised that you haven't found another woman to replace me. After all, you're doing all this traveling now, going to different cities with all sorts of women. I've read in some of those teen magazines of you going out with women who won a date with you. Didn't any of them appeal to you?"

Shawn paused for a moment but never took his eyes off her.

"Let me tell you about those contests. Yes, I did go out with these women but there are several differences between them and you. First and foremost, they didn't want to date Shawn Foley. They wanted a date with 'The Flake'. They wanted the celebrity not the person. I was expected to crack jokes, do silly things, be all the various characters that had gotten me this far. If I tried to have a serious discussion with any of them, the typical response was that I was becoming dull. Do you know how much that hurt to not be able to share all the other things about me? Therefore, after a while I just stopped trying and gave them what they wanted. I remember how you and I could talk for hours about anything under the sun. We talked to each other. You would tell me things, I would tell you things, and we would listen to what each other had to say. All that the others wanted was to say that they spent time with a celebrity. Well they got their wish. They got to spend time with 'The Flake' but that is all they got. In addition, you are more mature than any of the others. You may only be 16 now but your maturity level even back then was much higher than that, yet you have managed to maintain your aura of innocence. I envy that in you. Then there is your intelligence. OK, I know you weren't exactly a straight A student but you are more intelligent that you gave yourself credit for. You were not only smart in the classroom but you were people smart too. You are hardly a stereotypical blonde airhead. Finally and maybe, this is sexist to say so but I'm going to say it anyway. You are the most beautiful women I have ever known."

The words caught Mina by surprise not because of their content but because of the intensity of which they had been spoken. Even with Sailor Venus, he hadn't been this intimate about his feelings. It was one of the nicest compliments Mina had ever heard a person tell her and told him so.

The words suddenly stopped and the pair looked at each other. Mina could feel her heart beating strongly against her body. Looking at Shawn, she saw him put his hands into hers tenderly. When they had talked, there was a conspicuous gap between the two. Now he had shifted his body closer to her. Their breath began to steam up the inside of a window.

It was Shawn who made the first move. He moved his lips towards her as he had done in the staircase of the hotel. On the other side Mina was only to happy to reciprocate. Their lips grew closer together. She had kissed her mother and father all her life before she went to school, came home, or just before she went to bed. In other cases, she had given kisses of kindness to Artemis. This would be the first real kiss to a boy she loved. Wondering how it would feel to kiss somebody as she was about to do Mina closed her eyes to make the sensations more intense. The heat of his hands resting against her cheeks. The exhaling of his breath touching her exposed skin. The smell of the cologne he was wearing. The...

CLICK!

The pair reacted quickly to the sudden intrusion. The limo door had been opened by the driver who didn't know what had been transpiring in the back but deduced certain actions the pair had been doing. He was embarrassed but did his best not to let it show.

"We're at the ball park Mr. Foley." ,he finally announced.

The pair looked at each other with a 'somebody up there doesn't like us' expression. Shawn was the first to exit the vehicle that had been parked in the VIP underground parking area before extending his hand to the lady with him to help her out as well. Employees for the ballpark greeted them before giving an escort to the ball field.

Catsy continued to follow the limo containing her objective. As the vehicle disappeared inside the stadium, she looked at her options. Most likely, she couldn't attack with so many witnesses but perhaps an opportunity would present itself. Of course, if the chance came where she could make an attack she'd be in the perfect position to do so. For a moment, she thought about the girl who was with him. It would be too bad if she had to be killed as well but this was a war and sometimes in war, innocent people die. This was too important to allow any witnesses to survive.

She found a position on the roof where she would have a good vantage point of the situation. Looking out into the stands, she saw tens of thousands of people buzzing in the stands. There would be no chance of her sneaking about, not with arousing suspicion. For now, she would stay at the stadium and keep abreast of the situation.

She had never seen a baseball game before although she had heard about the sport. While continuing to perform reconnaissance on her target she could see what the fuss was all about with this activity. Sitting down she got as comfortable as possible considering her whereabouts.

The officials of the ballpark escorted Mina and Shawn to the dugout via the underground tunnels within the stadium walls. Shawn was given the rundown on how the first pitch would happen. The two be allowed to stay inside the home team's dugout until it was time but were asked not to speak with any of the players unless they were spoken to first so as to not distract them from their concentration on their task. The national anthem would be then be played followed by the first pitch. Until that moment Mina had no idea how much went on behind the scenes for something so simple.

Looking at Shawn, she could tell that for him this was business as usual. She hoped that she wasn't being a distraction to him for he was doing his best to walk the line between listening to their host and making sure he wasn't ignoring her.

In the dugout, Shawn asked for a ball so he could warm up before the pitch to assure he wouldn't hurt himself. The pair stayed in the dugout tunnel lightly lobbing the ball back and forth between each other. Overhand, underhand, side throw but not with too much speed since neither had a glove. There was a cold night wind blowing through area and it was hard for Mina to not feel the chill. Still she tried her best not to indicate any discomfort though in the end she did not succeed.

Seeing her distress Shawn stopped the warm-up and came to her grabbing his orange jacket that he had taken off earlier. She tried to protest his assistance because she didn't want him to be cold as well. Refusing to take no for an answer he made sure she was being taken care of. Her mind went back to that rainy day in England when he did the same thing for her. After all this time, he still thought more for her welfare than for his own. Rubbing her arms vigorously up and down over the sleeves with his hands Shawn helped her bloods circulation move throughout her body. It gave her a warmth as strong on the inside as it was on the outside.

"Better now?" ,he asked.

"MMMMMMMMMMM" ,she sighed.

Resting her head in the middle of his chest Mina placed her hands on each side followed by his arms covering around her body again. There in the hallway between the locker room and the dugout two people held onto each other, oblivious to the rest of the world, enjoying the silence of words between them. To speak now would have destroyed the moment for no words would have been sufficient to add to the moment.

It wasn't until the Japan national anthem was heard that the pair separated reluctantly. The earlier unease at the hotel and the discomfort in the limo had melted away and the two were closer now than they ever had been before or could have ever imagined before.

"Ummmmmm. Have to go to work. Stay here. I'll be back before you can miss me." ,Shawn said.

"I'm missing you already." ,Mina responded mischievously.

Smiling the two parted. By the time, he had reached the dugout steps Shawn had transformed from the gentle, introverted man she knew to the wild, extroverted, devil may care performer the world had come to know. Stepping out of the dugout for his trip to the pitchers mound he worked the crowd giving a few high five's to some of the fans, waving his ball cap to the other sections of the crowd that he couldn't reach. It was interesting, To the public he shared only the most superficial emotions, never letting them get too close to him inside, always appearing to have the time of his life thus staying on good terms with everybody but not giving so many pieces of himself that he didn't have a few for himself. A moment ago, they were in a tender clinch that nobody would ever know about, it was something special, just for her.

When Shawn moved away from the dugout, Catsy had a perfect angle to execute an assassination. To bad there were too many onlookers. Patience was not a quality Catsy possessed a great deal of but her fear of what the Wiseman would do to her if she disobeyed reigned in her zealous attitude.

A visitor arrived on the rooftop as Birdy put in an appearance. She scoured the scene along with her sibling.

"So who's winning?" ,Birdy said.

"Game hasn't started yet. Shawn's just threw the opening pitch. " ,Catsy informed her.

"Too bad we can't stay for the game. Reubeus has called a meeting of all the sisters. Apparently he's been visited by the Wiseman with a new plan."

With that, the pair disappeared with no one the wiser.

Looking out from the window of her bedroom, Artemis watched the cars pass by, watched an occasional pedestrian walk by the house, all the time hoping to see Mina come back. With each passing minute, he became lonelier.

He could have gone downstairs to spend time with the parents but he wasn't the most social of creatures at that moment. The meal they had put in his dish would have normally been wolfed down in a matter of minutes but this evening it didn't look so enticing.

Not able to stand watch any longer he moved off the ledge of the window into the main bedroom area. He moved about all the stuffed animals she had collected over the years. There wasn't an area in the room that didn't have at least one. From the tinniest teddy bears to an 8-foot tall giraffe, every species seemed to be represented.

He walked to the only creature that didn't belong to her. It was a black cat curled up in slumber in front of her bed. It was a gift given to him in fun by Mina because of the strong resemblance it had to Luna. The only noticeable feature to indicate a difference between it and the real cat was the lack of a crescent moon on its forehead. He laid down across from it looking into the closed eyes.

"I bet Mina is having a wonderful time tonight." ,he spoke to the figure not expecting any sort of response.

" I know she isn't in any danger, after all Shawn's nice. If I thought otherwise I'd have never let her get near him. After all she's battled the Negaverse, the Doom Tree, and the Dark Kingdom so what problem could arise from this one boy."

"Maybe because she's more interested in this 'one boy' that she had with anybody else, even you." ,came a voice loud and clear in his head.

"That's silly. What could he do to me that's dangerous?" ,he asked the inner voice.

"He can take Mina away from you or haven't you thought about that yet? If the relationship takes root then she'll be seeing more of him than you." ,the inner voice responded.

"Shawn will only be here a couple more days then he'll be gone and he'll be out of her system.", trying to use logic to end the conversation.

"Or he could decide to stay behind, worse he could convince her to leave with him. " ,the inner voice countered

"This is getting ludicrous. Mina isn't the type of person to simply do something that impulsive on a whim. She wouldn't abandon the scouts. "

"Who is talking about the scouts? I'm talking about her abandoning you. "

"No. Not that. Anything but that... No, I refuse to believe this. That will never happen" ,Artemis affirmed but his heart became chilled with the fear of such a situation becoming reality. He felt a cold sweat of panic throughout his body.

Not able to get the thought out of his mind Artemis ran back to the windowsill to resume his watch for the limo and Mina. It would be another half hour before his vigil would bear any fruit.

Artemis saw a long car turning left at the corner, the stretch limousine made its approach on the street where Mina lived. In the darkness of the night, only the lights on the vehicle & the lampposts gave away its position when it pulled up to the sidewalk beside the house. The doorman got out to open the door at the rear where Shawn stepped out first. Turning around he extended his hand, which was accepted by Mina. Signaling the driver not to follow Shawn and Mina walked up the walkway to the porch. They disappeared from Artemis's view when they walked under the awning.

Not wanting to miss a thing he bolted out of the window, becoming airborne, he took to the big tree in the front yard. He needed to get down quickly before something happened. Descending the branches of the tree, he touched down on the lawn.

Two people stood on the porch in the night sky with the full moon shining its light down on them. Facing each other, they looked deep into the eyes of the other. In a few hours, they had gone from awkward friends who had just been reunited to something closer to what they had in the past.

"Thank you for a wonderful time Shawn."

"The pleasure and honor was mine. As much as I've prayed for this moment, I had a hard time believing that it would ever come true. I'm almost afraid that this may simply just be a dream and that I'll be waking up in a few minutes."

"If you want I can show that this is for real and not a dream.", she cooed while touching his arms gently.

Shawn's eyebrows arched up in surprise. Mina had never flirted so obviously before with him before. Then again, Mina had never flirted with anybody like she was attempting to do now and it made her a little nervous. Looking into his eyes the young women could tell that he had no idea what she hand in mind. She leaned up her body against him tilting her head slightly upward to kiss him. Twice this evening they had tried and failed when outside forces interrupted the pair. She would not let this opportunity pass if she could help it yet hoped she wasn't being too forward.

It felt good as Shawn wrapped his arms around her. To see his face coming closer to hers. Soon their lips would touch and the two could express their feelings more intimately than they had done with mere words. Their lips began to press. She wanted to express her feelings as honestly as possible, yet how does one put all of ones hopes, emotions, dreams, and desires into a pair of lips? Perhaps that is the purest essence of a first kiss. Not having suffered through the disappointment, broken promises, or mental games she would be able to give of herself more fully than she ever would be able to again. In the future, there would be other kisses but none would have the innocence or pleasure of this first one.

From a distance, Artemis watched the scene before him. The longer the pair held each other in embrace the harder it was for him to watch. Part of him wanted to claw the young man to pieces for being so brazen with Mina yet he realized that all he was doing was a response to the invitation that had been laid before him. Finally he couldn't watch anymore. With tears coming out of his eyes he ran back up the tree, and jumped back into the bedroom.

After what seemed like an eternity yet in reality was perhaps one minute, the lips of Mina and Shawn parted from each other. Her mind swirled with emotions from the just completed kiss. The knees were growing weaker as she leaned into Shawn's body. Her body was physically weakened yet inside there was a surge of energy she had never experienced before. She didn't speak for there were no words in existence to explain what she was feeling or how to express it.

"Oh Mina, you really are growing up." ,was the only thing she was able to hear from Shawn .

He would never see the smile of satisfaction that crossed Mina's lips as she rested her head against his chest. Heaving a sigh she tried to make these moments lasts.

"Tomorrow, I've got to attend the grand opening of the theatre and a buffet served. After that I've got some time off finally. Would you like to go out with me?" , he asked her.

She looked up at him with a surprised look on her face. This was more than she had dared to hope for when she had gone to see him tonight.

"I'd love to.", was all she could say in response.

Late in the nighttime a kitchen area in the downtown district had been dark and empty for a couple of hours. The food had been stored away, the utensils cleaned up, and employees had gone home for the evening,

With a glow in the center of the room, the four sisters transported themselves into the area. Avery turned on the lights so the foursome could see where they were walking. Opening up drawers and doors, they searched the entire area.

"If only we could figure out which of these foods were being served tomorrow at the opening?" ,Birdy observed as she rummaged through one of the smaller freezers intently, picking up various foods to determine any possible clue as to its origin.

"I say we just take poison all the food and get out of here. Its late and I need my beauty sleep." ,complained Prizma in her usual impatient tone.

"There isn't enough sleep in the world that will help you.", snipped Avery back always ready to tweak her sister.

Prizma shot a look of anger back at Avery. Realizing that it wouldn't take much for another fight between the two to start Catsy jumped into the middle of the quarreling sisters. There was an objective to achieve and family or no, she wasn't going to allow them to put the mission at risk.

"You two want to fight, do it on your own time. We need to get this done first or Rubeus and Wiseman will have our hides. So shut your mouths and open those doors.", Catsy commanded.

For the better part of half an hour, the four searched high and low. Systematically they moved through the area.

"OVER HERE!" shouted Birdy triumphantly.

She opened the large freezer, waving her hand to her other siblings to come forward. Coming forward they, saw trays of food covered in saran wrap. Across the top of the wrap in black marker was written in bold letters 'LAFF FACTORY'

"Jackpot!" , added Catsy pulling out a large corked pot , "Now lets add out own little ingredient to the recipes. Be careful when you lift up the wrapping. We have to make it look like it hasn't been tampered with. These humans may not be the smartest but they are not complete idiots. If they sense the food has been meddling with they'll just throw it out and substitute something else."

Carefully taking the food out the contents were placed on the counters nearby. It would be a long night ahead for all of them. Uncorking the pot she grabbed a small handful of dusty green powder.

"Prizma, you've got 1st watch. Birdy will relieve you in an hour. Make sure nobody comes in." ,commanded Catsy."

No sooner did the sister leave that the others began their evenings work.

Artemis stood outside the bathroom where he heard the sounds of water running and Mina singing. It had been so long since he had seen her so happy. In his heart, he knew that last time she had been this ecstatic was when she had been in England...with Shawn.

His stomach began to knot again at the thought of the two together. Why did he have such a negative reaction at the thought when he was the one who encouraged her to seek him out in the first place? Maybe it was the pain that his realization that Mina was growing up. She was becoming a very beautiful woman both inside and out. Of course, he had known how special the young girl was for the longest time. Not just because of her being a sailor scout but because of many other qualities that belonged to Mina long before he reappeared in her life. The realization that that soon she would be a woman hit him hard. If she ever wound up having a relationship with any boy that became serious, would she still confide in him as much as she had in the past? Would their relationship change by the inclusion of someone who she truly loved? For years he had Mina alone to himself, now that was starting to change, and it scared him down to his heart.

Was he scared of the change or simply jealous that her affections and the close relationship that they shared wouldn't be just between the two of them anymore? Luna primarily took care of Serena, but also worked very closely with Ami, Rei, and Lita. He cared about the others of course but not in the same way he felt about Mina. In his heart, he would always be hers, through the good times and the bad, no matter what.

His thoughts were interrupted when he heard the shower being turned off. His sensitive hearing could hear the towel being taken off the rack and wrapped around her body. He moved out of the way so she wouldn't accidentally step on him or his tail when she exited.

Stepping out the door, he could see in Mina's eyes that she was still lost in the images of the night she had just experienced. Attempting to put on a happy face Artemis walked with her to the bedroom.

He turned away from her before the towel could be removed and allowed Mina the privacy to change into her pajamas. When he heard the chair of her dresser being pulled back Artemis knew it was safe to turn around.

Mina sat down in front of her dresser mirror to begin the nightly ritual of combing her long blonde hair before she went to bed. In its reflection, Artemis could see the smile on Mina's face. When asked all about what happened between her and Shawn, Mina regaled him with all the details that she could remember of the evening. With each tale, Artemis fell into a deeper despondence. Curling himself up he buried his face.

At first he responded to her comments with an occasional "uh huh.", or "I see", while at the same time trying to keep the emotions under control. Finally, he became silent knowing that if he spoke up again the tears falling from his eyes would show up in his voice.

It took several minutes before Mina noticed the silence. When she did though she turned around to see her feline friend it was not the normal, jovial, Artemis she was use to seeing. Something wasn't right and she knew it.

Leaving the seat, she laid down on her bed next to her friend. Using her fingernails she softly stroking his clean white fur up and down. At first, there was no reaction from her feline friend indicating that the situation was worse than she suspected. Customarily he enjoyed the feeling of being petted, and the attention that Mina would give him during those times. After all, he may talk like a human, surround himself consistently with humans, and occasionally behave with very human characteristics, still like any cat being stroked in this manner was traditionally a primal pleasure.

"Artemis? Are you...all right with my wanting to see Shawn tomorrow? I guess in all the excitement I haven't done much thinking about how you feel about the situation. Are you against my seeing him?"

The questions put him at a disadvantage. While in the past, he had told a white lie or two in order to protect her feelings he couldn't bring himself to saying anything bad about the boy. He looked into those caring eyes of Mina Aino and saw nothing but love and compassion for him. He was tired of fighting it. He didn't have the strength to bear under the pressure anymore. He had to tell her.

"Mina, I am having a major problem with this. I've got nothing against Shawn personally. I know he cares for you more than anything in the world. His actions tonight are proof of that. Moreover, I want you to be the happiest women in the world. You deserve it more than anybody I know, even the other scouts."

Her cheeks reddened by the compliment.

"Do you know how much I love you Mina?", he added.

"I've always known that you loved me.", she admitted.

"I don't think you do. You see I've been trying to fight what I've been feeling for a long time Mina. I don't recall when I knew it. I don't know how it happened. It happened slowly, gradually, and snuck up on me so fast I never saw it coming. I tried to pretend it wasn't real but the harder I tried to ignore it the more forcefully it came back."

Laying down on her bed with one elbow propping up the upper half of her body Mina was confused by what she was hearing.

"What are you trying to tell me Artemis?"

His lips quivered for a few moments unsure of taking his final steps on this journey. Still he had gone this far and if he didn't get it out now he never would.

"Mina Aino. The fact of the matter is that I'm in love with you and have been for quite some time now."

Back at the kitchen work proceeded slowly but surely. While the girls wanted to put the fateful potion into everything, they learned early that some items couldn't be done. The powder could not be placed into the gelatin without disturbing the smooth surface of the desert. Avery put too much into one of the dishes causing it to change into a moldy green forcing the sisters to remake the appetizer.

Catsy not only supervised the activities but also worked as hard as any of the four. The other three took half hour shifts watching for anyone to possible come in. It gave them also a chance to take a rest. However as the leader of the mission Catsy wouldn't stop. There would be time for rest and sleep after this objective was achieved.

Still the other girls complained of Catsy ordering them around too much. They complained about how the menial labor was ruining their manicures, their soft skin, and their good looks. Normally a threat about what the Wiseman would do to them if they failed was enough to shut their mouths for a time and the work continued into the night.

Once the mixture had been mixed to hide the powder within Avery, Prizma, and Birdy was ready to leave. Catsy however knew the night wasn't over. All traces of their appearances had to be erased. The utensils used to combine the food and powder had to be cleaned. Because the dishwasher had been shut off for the evening this meant the only method of cleaning was old fashioned soapy water, hard scrubbing, dipping the soapy utensils in cold water, drying them completely with a towel, and putting them away in the right drawer.

When the girls complained this time about the water ruining their hands Catsy had enough of their complaining and bickering to the point where she lost her temper. Going over to Prizma and Avery, she bared her sharp claw fingernails, placing them underneath the jaws of her two sisters.

"One more word. Just one more word out of any of you and there will be a lot more ruined around here than just your hands. Understand me!"

No one doubted that Catsy meant what she said. One by one the other girls retreated to the sinks. Prizma gave a look like she'd rather deal with Rubeus and the Wiseman combined rather than put her hands in the hot soapy water. She made a disgusting face as the hands went in and scrubbed the first item, a spatchula. After a few seconds, Prizma dropped it into the cold water where Avery was ready to rinse before handing it to Birdy ready with a towel to dry.

"You call that clean? Try again and take one step closer to the sponge.", Catsy commanded.

Prizma started to open her mouth in protest when Catsy bared her claw again in her sister's face. The oldest sister wasn't fooling around any more. She didn't care if her other sisters hated her guts after this mission but she wasn't going to put up with any more of their insignificant squabbling this evening. Birdy shrank back not wanting to see her sister take out hostilities on her. Avery while as good a fighter as Catsy wasn't ready to prove it this evening, especially since she knew who was right in this matter. The mission had to take precedence over anything else.

One by one, each item that had been used was cleaned properly under Catsy's watchful eye. Each item was washed, dried and put away in its proper place. Once this distasteful activity for them was finished, they still weren't through. The sink that had been used for the washing had to be drained and dried or else when the workers came in the water stains would give away that someone had been inside during the night. Catsy using a large towel took care of this final detail, and then performed a visual sweep of the entire kitchen to make sure everything was the way the sisters had found it when they arrived that evening.

"All right. Now I know I've ridden you all pretty hard tonight...",Catsy started to say.

Avery rolled her eyes in sarcasm.

"You don't say. We hadn't really noticed." ,Avery spat back.

Catsy decided to ignore the comment. They had been working together for hours into the night. They were all a little tired, a little grouchy. She wasn't above taking a cheap shot for the sake of harmony now that their mission was complete for the evening.

"Be that as it may. You all did a good job. Now get some sleep. Tomorrow is the big night.

One by one the other sisters disappeared until only the eldest remained. She looked around one final time at the dark kitchen. Satisfied nothing had been missed she too left the scene.

Mina sat down on her bed in disbelief having great difficulty believing what she had just heard. It was almost more than she could have ever comprehended. She was unable to talk, to give any sort of response.

"I know what a shock this is to you. Believe me if things had not happened today I wouldn't have shared this information with you now."

"But...when?. How? I mean...", she stuttered and stammered.

The cat tried to compose himself. The girl was still bewildered but tried to look calm about the situation. Neither was very successful at their tasks.

"I can't say exactly when I knew. It isn't something that one day I wake up and said 'I'm in love with someone.'. It caught me off guard just as it's now done with you. It wasn't your eyes that I fell in love with first. It wasn't your hair either. It wasn't the way you walked, or talked. It wasn't your charm, grace, beauty. It wasn't anything that was physical or mental. I wound up falling in love with your whole package. I tried not to let it show. Therefore, I buried the feelings deep in my heart, tried to hide the emotions. I did it by putting on my best playful cat persona. Sometimes when we'd play I'd run away for no apparent reason. That was because my feelings for you were getting too close to the surface and I knew that a love like I was feeling could never be reciprocal."

She heard the anguish in his voice, the burden, and the hidden emotions that were now bubbling to the surface. She marveled at his being able to such a secret from her for so long. It was then that Mina was able to find her voice again.

"Why couldn't you tell me this before Artemis? Why the big secret? Do you think I wouldn't understand?"

"There were times when I wanted to but I didn't. This is a conversation I've had with myself countless times. I looked at the pros and cons of if I should tell you or not. Every time I saw a boy flirting with you at school I became jealous. I'd want to tell then but couldn't, in the last few months when I'd see a teenager even look at you I could feel the envy rising up within me. I looked for excuses to deny myself. Finally when Shawn came into town the feelings became too much to bear. I didn't expect what happened. Maybe I was so caught up in myself I couldn't think straight. Now as for the biggest question of all. Why? Why didn't I tell you before now?"

Pausing for a moment to catch his breath and self-control he looked at the young girl. His eyes showed what was in his heart for so long.

"Mina, pick me up."

Doing as instructed she picked up the white cat and let him sit on her lap. He sat in the gap between her yoga styled crossed legs. Instinctively Mina began to caress the dark fur on his right side while his left side rested comfortable against her stomach and chest. He wanted to enjoy the feeling but this was not the time.

"Tell me Mina, would you ever hold Shawn this way?"

At first, she didn't understand what he meant, and then it hit her. She would have her arms wrapped around Shawn's shoulders or waist with him looking directly at her. Then Shawn would do the same things in return. She couldn't picture ever-holding Artemis in such a manner.

Her arms loosened slightly allowing her faithful companion loose. Using his hind legs for support, he stretched the upper part of his body so that his face could rub against hers.

"Tell me Mina, when our cheeks touch do you feel the same warmth that you feel with Shawn?"

Lifting his head up he stretched his paws out to touch each side of her face on the cheeks. Mina began to see where this was leading.

"Could I ever caress your face the way he does? Can these paws ever wipe away your tears? Yes I've done so in the past but we both know it isn't the same."

He pressed one paw into her tender hand. The one that often pleased him with the stroking of his fur.

"All I can give you is the warmth of my fur, not the warmth of a human hand with fingers that could interlock with yours and hold each other as you walked down the street."

For a moment, she saw Artemis's face closing in on hers. Slowly as to not scare her, his face getting larger. He tried to show what he had in mind but found his respect for the young lady too great to do so. He simply whispered.

"Could I ever kiss you the same way Shawn can?"

The words were still difficult to pronounce. Even now, he wasn't sure if he was doing the right thing but at least he could stop pretending and keep part of himself secret.

"Oh Artemis. I'm so sorry. I should have known. I should have seen..." ,she apologized never having realized what she had been doing unknowingly to her friend.

The cat shook his head negatively.

"No, I worked very hard to keep this from you. For a long time it was easy to slip into 'cat mode' pretending I was nothing more than what you see. Still Mina no matter how much I wish things were different I am a cat. I was born a cat, raised a cat, live as a cat and one day will die as a cat. Nevertheless, even though I am in every physical way a cat I'm not a cat. I have very real human emotions. I think like a human, I feel like a hum... I...I love...like..."

At that point the words couldn't come. His tears fell from his dark eyes. It was more than he could handle. Still Mina was there to pick him back up and bring him close stroking him tenderly.

"Please, don't Mina.", he asked.

The young girl refused. After hearing such an intimate confession from his heart how could she in turn abandon him? She laid her back down on the bed bringing the feline to her chest sympathetic to his emotional well being as well.

"So would you prefer I not see Shawn tomorrow?", she asked.

His head popped up quickly in horror answering her question with conviction.

"NO! I would never ask you to do such a thing! I would never ask that of you. You've sacrificed so much already to be a sailor scout. The last thing I'd want is to deprive you of anything that would make you happy. Being with Shawn makes you happy. I know that. "

Mina smiled. Even with all he's going through, he was still more concerned about her happiness than his.

"Mina, I might be more than a little difficult to deal with, especially now that you know my secret. For a long time I was also afraid that eventually something would snap inside me and I'd start doing things that might make you wonder if I still cared for you anymore. The truth of the matter is that it isn't because I don't love you that I'd do these things. It would be because I do love you. I love you so...much. So please accept my apologies for anything I've done that hurt you and for anything I might do in the future. I guess I'm just afraid that there may be a day when you don't need me anymore."

Her fingers continued massage over his fur, showing him without words that this new revelation had not changed their relationship. She rested her head against his to whisper.

"Artemis, I can't ever imagine a time where I wouldn't need you, past, present or future. I'm sure I haven't been the easiest person in the world to deal with. Yet you've always been there for me. You've been one of the few constants I can always believe in. It would mean a lot to me though if you liked Shawn, I'd like to have the two special men in my life to be all right with each other."

A special man in her life? Artemis had never heard Mina refer to him in such a manner before. It comforted him to know she felt that way. It helped to calm, though not erase some of the fear he had been possessing.

"However, I won't force this on you. I won't ask you to feel in a way you honestly won't at this moment.", she finally added.

The white cat heaved a sigh of relief, thankful that all his fears had been for nothing. That this disclosure hadn't made their relationship weaker. On the contrary, he understood better than he ever had before just how mature his young charge had become, in return he could have sworn seeing a deeper look of respect coming from her blue eyes than he had ever seen before as he felt his eyes start to close, ready to sleep.


	4. Date With Destiny

Chapter 4 : Dates With Destiny

"What about this one?", Mina asked her friends.

Artemis looked on as Mina had tried on yet another outfit for her date with Shawn. He shook his head and marveled. Piling on her bed already was close to 2 dozen different garments she had already tried on. None of which had seemed satisfactory in either her eyes or the eyes of her friends who had come over early in the morning to help her for the big date.

" I don't know Mina. That...sort of reveals a bit too much if you get my drift.", countered Rei respectfully.

A couple of other girls nodded in agreement. Looking down to the slit in her skirt, she understood. She didn't want Shawn to think of her as a hussy. Flipping off the clothes effortlessly, she waited for Lita to take another outfit from the closet that might do the trick.

"I don't know if I'll find anything in there that Shawn will really like.", she expressed with a little frustration.

"I'm sure Shawn will like you no matter what you wear Mina. He's here to see you, not your clothes.", countered Artemis.

"That's beside the point. I want to look extra special for him. Can't you understand that? This means a lot to me."

For a moment, Mina was upset with Artemis but calmed down. He simply didn't understand what it meant to be a girl in love. The extra things a girl would do to catch the eye of the special men in their lives. Not just the clothes that they'd wear but also the preparation of the hair. Perhaps adding jewelry as well. If her mother hadn't already forbidden its use, she would have wanted to wear makeup and lipstick this day.

"No daughter of mine is going out there looking like she's working on the Ginza.", the mother had responded sharply earlier..

The next outfit she tried on seemed to get a more positive response from the others.

"I see what you're saying Rei.", Serena began to understand. ,"Mina needs to keep the outfits simple. I think that combination doesn't quite work though. Maybe a dress or maybe even a blouse/skirt combination.

Ami saw an outfit in the closet along the same lines Serena seemed to be talking about and reached for it. Handing it to Mina, it was pressed against her body before trying it on.

"Yeah! I think we may be onto something with that one!", Rei exclaimed

The girls all applauded when Mina finished putting on the new outfit. Serena found a little handbag she thought would compliment the clothes and gave it to her. It was perfect. The colors coordinated well. It showed off her form quite nicely yet didn't show off too much.

After she finished modeling it for her friends, she then went to Artemis. His opinion had always mattered a lot to her but now even more so after the conversation they had the previous night. Standing before him, she noticed that his bottom jaw shook and trembled. She continued to stand perfectly still in front of him waiting.

He stood there in stony silence unable to talk, his eyes began to water, his breathing rapidly increased. It was as if he was seeing her that first time yet this time in a different light.

"I have now seen perfection.," he finally said.

The other girls giggled at the comment but Mina understood. It had not been said flippantly but rather honestly. Lifting him into her arms, she petted him. She wanted him to understand how much she still cherished him.

In that moment, she was still his. Soon he would have to learn to share her with another. Yet in the last 12 hours between them many steps were taken that had strengthened their bonds. The fear had not gone away but now he knew it to be foolishness.

Before she could leave the house for the date though came the final step. She liked was she was wearing. Her friends liked what she was wearing. She knew Shawn would like it, but would her parents approve of it? Heading down the stairs to the kitchen where they were having breakfast, she stood before them waiting, hoping they'd would.

Across town, a similar scene was taking place in the hotel where the performers of the Laff Factory were staying. Helping his friend Gator ran through his mental checklist of things that would be needed for a successful date.

"You've showered right? You're looking good. Here mate. Use some of this stuff", observed Gator.

Shawn caught the tossed bottle. Looking at its label, he noticed it was a bottle of cologne. Gator's 'weapon of mass seduction' as he liked to call it.

"Just a sprits behind each ear and maybe a spay on your neck. Don't dunk yourself in it like last time all right? Now you're looking good mate. Now do you have enough money for today? I'll be glad to give you some if you need it."

"Would you mind? I'd hate to run out of cash and I'd rather not use the credit cards if I didn't have to."

The giant Aussie reached into his wallet, pulled out several large bills, and thrust them into the upper pocket of his associate.

"I promise that I'll pay you back next payday.",assured Shawn.

The big msn simply shook his head negatively.

"Nah, don't bother. Consider it a late birthday present. "

"Pretty late don't you think? My birthday was three months ago.",he ribbed.

"Look just take the money and have the greatest date ever. Now where are you going to meet her?"

"At her house. I have a cab to take me there. Then we will come back for the grand opening. Once it's over, we'll head out."

"Won't you even stay for the brunch?"

"No ,We will spend most of the day to some places she thinks will be fun, then go out to eat somewhere. We're trying to make the day pretty loose, carefree…..and alone. "

"You got your cel phone with you? We want to be able to reach you if we need you for anything."

The young man looked down scornfully at his device. The portable leash that always seemed to keep him from roaming free. He heaved a sigh before putting it in his pocket.

"Yeah, I've got it. Just do me a favor will you Gator? Don't need me."

Returning to the kitchen of the caterer Catsy disguised herself as one of the workers. She came in to make sure that the specially prepared food would be loaded on and taken to the Laff Factory without any trouble. It might have been more practical to delegate the job to one of her sisters but the plan was too important to trust to one of her subordinates. The other employees were moving the food to the van so fast it was easy for her to get lost in the shuffle. The man who was obviously in charge continued to make remarks that were unnecessary.

"Let's move it people. We are on a deadline here. We have to be there before the guests. Be careful with those deviled eggs. Anybody drops the food and not only will I take the cost our of your paycheck, I'll take it out of your hides as well."

Catsy worked very hard to keep from laughing at this blowhard who was trying to impress people that he was the boss. Unlike the previous evening when she had threatened her sisters it was only a tactic that she used only to the extent it was needed to get the job done. This person it seemed simply like to hear the sound of his own voice and to try to give himself an aura of I am boss. Fear me.

When the last of the food was placed inside the fan and properly secured, all the employees were given written directions to the Laff Factory. They would be taking their own vehicles to the grand opening while the chef in charge rode with the food in the van.

The taxicab pulled over to the curb in front of the Aino residence. Shawn gave specific instructions to the driver not to leave that he had to pick up someone here and that it would take about 10 minutes. He exited the cab carrying two long rectangular boxes towards the front door. Before he could figure out how to balance the boxes while still pressing the doorbell he was answered by Mina's mother who looked like a more mature version of her daughter. It was obvious where Mina got her good looks.

"Come in Shawn.",she instructed.

"Thanks. Is Mina ready?",was his response.

"She should be down shortly.",informed the mother.

Trying hard to balance the two bulky boxes, he handed one of them to the mother. Opening it up she discovered a lovely bouquet of flowers.

The mother looks at the flowers then gave a long sniff to appreciate the aroma. It was clear to the mother that Shawn was trying very hard to heal any wounds caused by the final incident in England.

While the mother was putting the flowers into a watered vase, the Mina made her appearance at the top of the stairs. The orange blouse, flowered skirt combination her friends picked out was approved by the parents though Mina was sure the father's approval was done rather grudgingly and at the insistence of the mother. Shawn stood at the bottom of the steps in stunned silence to awed to make a single remark for several seconds, comedic or otherwise. At the bottom of the steps, she gave a spin move so he could admire her from every angle. When he finally found his voice, Shawn spoke.

"That outfit does something for you. That outfit does something for me too."

The mood was broken up by Artemis who came down with Mina but had been ignored by the guest whose eye's never left Mina's form. He tried to cross up the young man by attempting to block his path to her. The move didn't escape Mina who picked up her feline companion and began to pet him. This could not be easy for him. Even with the talk, the two had the previous evening.

Seeing Mina's pet Shawn reached out so he could rub his fur.

"Hey Artemis, remember me? Look like Mina's still taking good care of you. Oh, I've got something for you Mina."

He held out the box to her, which she took after placing Artemis on a nearby chair. Opening it up she gasped and pulled out a dozen long-stem red roses. She called her mother over to show the gift she received. As impressed as the mother had been with her gift she stood in amazement at the offering to her offspring. She thanked her suitor with a light kiss on his cheek as the mother took away the roses to put into Mina's room.

Shawn looked at his watch and realized that while there was plenty of time to get to the grand opening he didn't want to push his luck. Therefore, when the mother came back downstairs he thanked her for the hospitality, then escorted Mina out the door to the waiting cab.

From the window of her room, the other sailor scouts checked out the pair as they walked down the sidewalk to their mechanical chariot.

"They really do make a lovely couple.",stated Ami with a sigh.

"Yeah, I hope this works out well for her.",added Lita.

"But I wanted to go downstairs and meet him."whined Serena.

"Oh right. If you had shown up down there you would have bugged him with a thousand questions and they'd never get on their date."argued Rei.

"You should talk Rei. I saw the paper and that picture of his holding your hand. That's all I've been hearing about from you ever since.",countered Serena.

The two began sticking their tongues out at each other with the appropriate raspberry sounds as they usually did when the pair fought. A long time ago Ami and Lita learned it was best not to get between the pair until they were over their snipping. Only when they were tired of it did the group decide it was the proper time to leave the house and wait with anticipation of the juicy details from Mina after the date was over.

Inside the Laff Factory, the various official and dignitaries were mulling around with both the local performers and their international counterparts. Outside in a side alley 'K' waited for the arrival of the final guests of the evening. He looked at his watch. He noticed that there was still ten minutes to go before the ceremony was to begin but he didn't like how close to the start they were getting. On the outside, he maintained a professional face but inside he hoped that nothing unfortunate had happened.

He looked at the watch again. Only one minute had passed since the last time he had checked it. Where was he? He finally decided to call him on the cellular phone. After two rings, the other side picked up.

"Flake here.",answered Shawn

"How soon before you get here? ",asked the host.

"We're about half a block away. We just got out of the cab and are on foot since we didn't want to attract attention. We're meeting in the alleyway right?

"That's confirmed."

"We're now in the alleyway can you see us?"

"K" waved his hand over his head to get the attention of the pair as they walked up. He was impressed with the attire for both individuals who looked more elegant than their respective ages would have indicated.

"A pleasure to meet you again Miss Aino."

She nodded her head in appreciation of the compliment never taking her grip off the right arm of Shawn. It was quite apparent that he was enjoying the snuggling of his golden haired beauty. 'K' then spoke quickly with a hushed tone.

"Miss Aino. I think it would be best if you walked in first then Flake will be in shortly. I've arranged it so you'll be sitting right behind him. You'll forgive me for not seating you together since it would be sure to stir up all sorts of gossip and put you into a most uncomfortable, white hot spotlight."

"He's right you know. I just want to go in, make my speech and get out with you. If we don't do it this way, you'll be harassed all day by reporters and for several days afterward. I don't want to put you through that Mina."

She didn't like the plan even though she understood its logic. As usual, he was trying to protect her but she didn't want to be parted from him even for a minute this day. Still she meekly cooperated and went inside while Shawn and 'K' discussed something outside.

Catsy stood in one of the corners in the upper balcony where she wouldn't be spotted easily. She looked down to the main floor of the theatre and noticed that all the participants had assembled. The food was displayed in a line on one side of the stage. The servers obediently standing by while the chef strutted around like a peacock in full plumage. The members of the troupe mingled about with the politicians and their guest as camera operator took snapshots of the event. It wasn't until 'K' called the people to sit down did the activity cease. Catsy chuckled quietly to herself knowing the moment of victory was almost at hand.

It didn't take long for the ceremony to become quite boring for Mina. Sitting on the end seat in a row he sat through three different politicians make long-winded speeches about how great it was for the Laff Factory to be setting up a "branch office" in their town. About how this was going to be the first step towards the reclaiming of an area that had turned into an eyesore. She tried so hard not to fidget, and not to think about how this was cutting into the time she could be spending alone with Shawn. Where was a negaverse monster when you needed one to make people scramble away?

At one point she saw Shawn who was in the seat right in front of her adjust his body slightly so he could drape his right arm over the back of the chair. It was obvious he felt the same way about political speeches as she did. Then he put his right hand into a fist, then stuck out his pinky. Looking around to see if anybody would notice she inched her hand forward and stuck her right pinky into his where it was immediately held tight. Mina continued looking around ready to let go in case someone because wise to their movements until 'K' introduced the next speaker.

"Now I present to you, representing all the performing members of Laff Factory Inc. Shawn Foley."

The crowd applauded as Shawn relaxed his pinky in time before anybody noticed the action of the pair. Standing up he approached the microphones as camera's flashed. Almost instinctively, she chuckled under her breath. The prince of comedy making a speech? Taking a deep breath and turning his head to the left to cough he approached the microphone.

"Thank you very much",he began.

He paused as the murmurs of the crowds died down.

"When 'K' asked me to make this speech he made me promise that I would do so with dignity and respect. I told him I'd give this speech all the dignity and respect it deserved."

The remark solicited a chuckle from the audience who obviously imagined what the comic would have liked to say or do next. He waited for the titters to end before he continued.

"There are some firsts you rarely recall. I personally don't remember my first day of life. I don't remember the first thing I ate. I don't even remember my first birthday or my first day of school. Then there are some firsts you never forget for better or worse. I still remember fondly my first friend, the first time I got up to perform in front of a crowd.. Believe me I'll never be able to forget…..

Suddenly he looked directly at Mina, but the movement was so subtle the crowd didn't seem to notice.

",my real first love. My first real kiss.",he concluded.

Shawn took a moment to compose himself as he began to look away from Mina to play to the crowd.

"So it is with great pride, and deepest humility that I welcome our Tokyo brethren into the Laff Factory family. After our group performs here this week, you will have a great responsibility. For I believe a lot of good comes from laughter. Not just the natural instant gratification. You often hear the phrase 'laughter is the best medicine'. I believe that's true to a strong degree. I think laughter can heal not just mentally but physically. In addition, something I learned a long time ago. In a world where you hear about people fighting and killing each other, I've never seen a person hurt or kill another while their laughing themselves silly. I've never seen a person who was able to use a knife or a gun while rolling with laughter. You are sitting there wondering if I really believe this? The answer is simple. Yes, I do. Is it naïve? Perhaps, but sometimes the naïve have the best ideas because they haven't been conditioned into thinking they're wrong. So on behalf of the Great Britain chapter of the Laff Factory I thank you and welcome you into our family tree."

The crowd stood up in applause with Mina leading the cheering and the whistling. In less than three minutes, Shawn had managed to say more meaningful things than the politician did in their 15-20 she stood in awe of what she had just seen. If Shawn ever wanted to run for political office, he'd have her vote in a heartbeat.

From up in the rafters Catsy was also astonished by his words. When she had first been given this assignment, she had wondered why this place became so revered in the future? Why could such an insignificant building have created such an aura around it. The answer was obvious to her now. The words and feelings of Shawn Foley must have resonated through the years and been taken to heart by the people of Tokyo both now and in the future. This is why he had to be destroyed today.

After Shawn's speech 'K' concluded, the ceremony with a few final words then announced that the food was ready to be served. The crowd got up from their chairs and Shawn turned around to look at Mina.

"So how did I do?"

Mina looked back with great awe and respect.

"You are incredible. You know that right?"

Shawn gave a nervous chuckle. He suggested that now was a good time to exit while everybody was getting their food. Shawn gestured to Gator to come over and the using the colossal Australian as a combination shield and blocker they made their way to the back of the theatre and into the alleyway again. There the performers said their goodbyes. Then Gator produced a large shopping bag

"Here you go mate. One disguise kit.",the big man joked.

Shawn pulled out its contents.. First his favored Bronco jacket. After putting it on, he produced a hairpiece with hair much darker than his real scalp, then topped off with a ball cap and sunglasses.

"Better get going mate, before I decide to kidnap this little lass for myself.", Gator joked.

Mina signaled Shawn's friend to bend down slightly and thanked him with a peck kiss on his cheek in appreciation. She saw the towering figure stand to his full height lightly rubbing the side of his cheek where she had kissed him. It was perhaps the sweetest gift he had ever received. He found himself envying his comparatively diminutive partner as he watched the pair make their way down the alleyway to start their date.

Back at the Aino residence, Artemis walked around the house in a funk. He wanted to drop in on Mina and discover how the date was going. Part of him hoped she was having a good time, a more sadistic part of him hoped that Shawn was having a klutz day that not even Serena could top at her worst. He noted the incoming dark clouds and realized that there would be a storm in the afternoon. No doubt that would eliminate the amusement park in town for their date. No doubt though that Mina already had several options stored in her head for just such a situation. He went back into Mina's bedroom and laid down on the bed trying hard to inhale her fragrance from the pillows she slept on last night.

"Are you just going to sit there and mope all day?",came a familiar female voice.

Artemis twitched his head up to see Luna standing on the windowsill. His depression must have been worse than he realized since he hadn't heard her landing.

"I've got a surprise for you Artemis. Come with me."

At first, the white cat didn't even seem to register the request from Luna. This didn't surprise the female. Jumping into the room, she approached her colleague.

"Artemis, either move it, or I'll spay you…..the hard way.",she threatened.

Not having the energy to resist Artemis sluggishly got up and followed Luna out the window, down the tree and out of the Aino's yard. They walked several blocks until the reached the residence where Ami Anderson lived. Luna scratched at the door and meowed before the doors opened a moment later by the petite scout in her everyday guise.

"Oh good. You got him to come after all.",Ami pronounced

"What's this all about?",was all Artemis could say.

She picked Artemis up and began petting him as she also carried him into another room, which was dark. As Artemis tried to adjust his eyes to the darkness Ami giggled slightly before speaking.

"Well we were very concerned about you. Today must be very difficult for you so….."

Without warning a light turned and all the other scouts yelled out,"Surprise!."

"…..we decided to throw you a little party."

Artemis was too stunned to respond. Never had he expected this. The room was full of balloons and streamers. On the table there was even a cake with his name inscribed on it."

Luna explained.

"After our recent talk I realized how much you took care of Mina before we all joined forces. I suppose we took what you did for granted and I'm sorry about that. So to make up for it, if possible we decided to throw you this little party and make you the man of the hour."

"Mom is on call at the hospital for the next 24 hours so we'll have the place all to ourselves.",added Ami.

He never expected anything like this. Pulling out a chair from the head of the table Lita signaled Ami to place the guest of honor on it. Once seated the gang sang a version of 'For he's a jolly good fellow' which was sung loud, proud and strong but still very off-key. They applauded him before slicing up the cake to be served. Each of the girls brought gifts that they had made or paid for. Luna then suggested a few words from the honored guest to the applause of the rest.

Before Artemis could begin to speak a loud crackle of thunder was heard. Instinctively the girls turned to Lita who put her hands up part way proclaiming

"Wasn't me guys."

The rain come pouring down as a pair of figures ran towards the door of a local mall. The girl got to the door first and opened it before her male counterpart caught up with her. Inside the facility, the pair took stock of the damage the rain did to their attire and their looks.

"Of all the times for the weatherman to actually be right.",Mina complained.

Shawn took off his ball cap and shook off the excess water before running his hand over the hairpiece. Unzipping his jacket, he noticed that his date was on the verge of tears. The bright lights from inside the mall and the darkness of the outside allowed the glass to have a reflective quality to it. In it, she could see the golden hair that she had spent so much time styling to perfection that morning now looking tangled and somewhat stringy. The blouse and skirt clung to her wet body giving her a disheveled appearance.

"All that hard work for nothing, and I wanted to look so beautiful for you.", she began to sniffle.

"You've always looked beautiful to me.", he tried to assure her.

"B…But I wanted to look especially beautiful for you today."

The tears began to overflow her eyes and streamed down her cheeks. Then Shawn did something he never thought he'd be able to do. He withheld the jokes, the wisecracks, and simply held Mina close to his own waterlogged body and allowed her to cry. Occasionally people would come through the door to leave or enter the mall and look at the couple. Shawn simply noticed their presence and would nod his head or held out a hand to indicate everything was under control.

"I had such wonderful plans for us. The amusement park, Tokyo Towers, a little café for us to have lunch at. Now its ruined.",she continued sniffling out..

Shawn continued holding her tight trying to think of the right words to say. Something intelligent, wise, smart. Finally, he just decided to say something simple and honest.

"All that does sound good. Still it's been a long time since I've had a chance to cruise a mall too. Don't get too many chances to do that these days."

Looking up Mina couldn't believe how he was taking this turn of events in stride.

"But going to the mall isn't such a special thing. I wanted our time together to be special."

He looked down into her eyes and without a trace of humor or sarcasm plainly stated.

"As long as I'm with you, our time together is special. Now, let's dry those eyes all right?"

He reached into his pants pocket to pull out a handkerchief to dry her eyes. However, the rain had covered his body to the point that the water had seeped through soaking the cotton tissue as well. Mina found herself unable to stop giggling as he squeezed it and water actually came out of one of the ends. It was a joke that couldn't have been planned better if he had tried. It pleased Shawn to see Mina's face becoming happy again, even if it wasn't the way he planned to do it. He opened the door to the inside of the mall allowing the young lady to step through first.

"So where do you want to go to first?",she asked,

"First store we pass will work."

Meanwhile back at Ami's house Artemis was continuing to receive the royal treatment from all of the scouts. After the party food was served, eaten and the area cleaned up the girls decided to groom Artemis for when Mina returned from her date. At first he didn't object until he heard the words that it was going to start with a bath.

Even though he knew the girls meant well the thought of getting anywhere near water produced a natural cat fear throughout his body. Even when the girls showed how it was going to be a relaxing bubble bath in the kitchen sink he didn't want to go through with it. It was a major indignity for a cat to be given a bath. Worse Luna was going to be in the room to watch the whole event, which no doubt would give in her mind the license to humiliate him in the future. Then Lita played the girls trump card.

"Artemis, don't you want to look nice and handsome for Mina?"

The girls had played into his Achilles' heel and they knew it. Even so, it was with incredible reluctance and more than a few tears that he allowed the humiliation. He was thankful that the girls respected his feeling enough to have Luna removed from the room without him having to ask The bath was going to be degrading enough. Still the girls did their best to minimize the damage being done to his pride. They proceeded with efficiency. While Ami and Rei did the overwhelming amount of the cleaning Serena and :Lita worked very hard to keep the tabby's mind distracted by rubbing under his cheeks and heaping lots of praise upon him. It was with more than a little sense of relief when he heard Rei call for a towel. He was pulled from the water where a nozzle was waiting to wash off any remaining soap from his body. He managed to resist thrashing his body to remove the excess water until the girls could get the towels over his body. Finally, the girls pronounced the dreaded bath over much to his relief.

"So do I look good now? Will Mina like it?",he asked with hopeful eyes.

"Oh yes. You cleaned up very well. Look at this handsome man. Wouldn't you agree ladies?",praised Rei

He took a deep breath and exhaled thankful that the torture was over and that he had survived. He hoped Mina would appreciate what he had endured for her.

"You'll look even better when we're finished grooming you.",added Serena.

The words struck fear into his heart.

"What? No, please. No more!", he pleaded.

He continued to protest but Lita held him firmly and with his back to her thus preventing his claws from slicing her arms, face or any part of her body they would have come in contact with.

In spite of the early misfortune, the date with Shawn was gong better than Mina could have imagined. She found it amazing. She had been to this mall countless times in the past and she never had the reactions Shawn was showing. Her first thought was Shawn was reacting if he had never been to a mall before. As they spent more time together, she began to understand that while it wasn't true how long had he been able to relax and enjoy a mall trip without being hounded by fans. At the music store he often had to ask who many of the new artists were, and if they were any good. At one of the clothing stores he spotted an outfit, a lime-green kimono that he thought would look so good on Mina. It was perhaps the first time in history a guy actually enjoyed sitting around in a clothing store as she tried on the outfit. Almost choking when she saw the price Shawn assured her they weren't going to buy it. He just had to see if she would look as good in it as he imagined. As she exited the changing room, it wasn't just Shawn who gave a look of appreciation. From several areas of the store men of all ages whose head did a double take, causing some of the women they were with to respond with a sharp elbow to the gut in agitation.

"Wait a second, let me get a photo of this and text it to Gator. It'll drive him crazy."

Taking his phone, he snapped the shot and after showing the results to Mina pushed buttons on the phone where the image was sent to his comrade in comedy.

The only moment of difficulty came at the arcade. After defeating Shawn easily in the NASCAR racing game three tough looking teenagers approached them mocking him for having not only lost to a girl but to have lost so badly. The trio looked very menacing. If there was a fight Shawn could get badly hurt.

"Hey baby, why don't come home with a real man,"suggested the largest of the three bully's

Shawn was quick to quip back.

"Doubt you know one."

One of the other teens grabbed Mina by the upper arm and Shawn reacted predictably. However, the band expected the response. Not protecting himself, he was easy prey for a swift bolo punch to the stomach by the other tough guy. Mina screamed as he went down grasping his abdomen. The leader raised his leg preparing to kick Shawn in the back of the head when in desperation Mina reached out and gave him a kick in a male's most sensitive spot dropping him to his knees.

Luckily, the mall security arrived quickly having been alerted to the presence of the marauders by an employee of the arcade. Shawn was taken to a secure area within the mall to make sure he was all right. After being looked at within the private room Mina stayed with her bruised white knight but his mood had become dourer. It didn't take a genius to determine the reasoning. In his eyes, he had failed to protect her and the fiasco damaged his pride and ego.

"Some defender I turned out to be. I tried to save you and you wound up saving me.",he spoke without a hint of mirth.

"I'll take a lover over a fighter any day. If I wanted a fighter I'd start dating Mike Tyson.'

At first, Mina realized how stupid her statement sounded. Then Shawn turned his head toward her and his lips seemingly started crunching inward. The face began to contort, then in spite of his efforts let out a series of chuckle.

"Did you just tell a joke?",he inquired between snickers

Mina blushed though was thankful her comment was slowly bringing back the Shawn she wanted.

"I'm sorry.",she apologized.

"Don't be. That was good. This is a historical occasion. Mina Aino tells a joke, and a good one to boot. Tell me something. When Mike Tyson talks doesn't he sound like he's related to Elmer Fudd?"

He continued by doing impressions of the two.

Here's Tyson. 'I'm da tuffffest man in daw whole wowld.'. Now Fudd 'Be vewy, vewy, quiet. I'm hunting wabbit's ha-ha-ha-ha-ha."

Mina was quick to realize where the conversation was heading. Within his humor, he was trying to hide from his embarrassment and shame. To crawl into his personal shell once again. First, she tried to interrupt him but when that failed, she simply pressed her fingers against his lips. It was enough to get his attention.

"Please, don't do this. I want to be with Shawn today, not 'The Flake'."

She stroked him gently on his thigh and felt a bit of relief when she heard a giant sighing sound

from him. She had managed to avoid turning a bad incident into a total disaster.

Even three hours later, the celebration at the Laff Factory was in full swing. The honored guest ate their fill of food before exiting the scene while the combined troops of the Great Britain and Tokyo Laff Factory talked shop. In the corner of the stage steps Gator received a beep on his telephone. Somebody was trying to contact him. With so few people who knew how to contact his number he didn't think twice about answering. Flipping open the phone he saw the photograph of the kimono clad Mina. There was no message underneath but it wasn't needed. It was very apparent that the two were having the time of their lives on their date, wherever they were. As Gator began to feel a little jealous of his partner, something funny was happening in his chest and stomach. Brian Coe made his way over to the big man.

"Hey Gator. You all right? You're starting to look a little green around the gills. Need to head back to the hotel?"

Swiping his hand against the air, he indicated that maybe he'll feel better if he laid down for a while until whatever was afflicting him had a chance to pass by. He didn't want to be a party pooper. If the problem turned out to be more serious, he was certain he'd be able to get a ride later.

When Catsy found out that Shawn was no longer at the Laff Factory her heart raced in panic. This was a total disaster in her eyes. How was he ever escape? She had seen him walk in. She had heard his speech. So why wasn't he here now? She felt forced to report the latest developments to Rubeus to determine how she should proceed if she would still be allowed to be in charge of the mission.

"Has anybody else left?"the leader inquired.

"No Rubeus. They're still busy stuffing their faces."

He stroked his chin weighing the pro's and con's of the situation before speaking again.

When will the powder be at full effect?",he inquired.

"At the current rate of consumption we should be able to activate the plan a little past dusk. By that time the dark powers will be at its peak and we can trigger Rancor.

Rubeus nodded positively understanding the analysis of the situation. He informed Catsy to head back to the Laff Factory while he would stay behind to determine a plan to get their victim back to the destination. He was lucky the Wiseman hadn't contacted him. This was a good sign that perhaps this was the correct course of action to take. He didn't want to rush blindly forward and miss an obvious piece of information, or some clue. Most of the plan had been going as expected.

"That Shawn. He must have more lives than a cat.",he thought to himself.

"No! Please stop! Let the suffering end, .I'll never misbehave again.",silently prayed Artemis to any deity who might be listening.

After his bath, the combing of his hair wasn't too bad of an experience but when the girls decided to get creative with styling him it became a personal torment to him. Even if it was for Mina's approval it was so humiliating to be restrained from thrashing about while the others blow-dried his hair, put a few sprays of perfume on his fur and he thought he was going to die of embarrassment when Serena tried to clip on a cute red bow over the top of his head. He understood the girls meant well but they had no idea how their treatment was shameful to him. He wanted to cry but in the presence of Luna what was left of his dignity wouldn't allow it.

Meanwhile at the Laff Factory, the trio of Terri Hearst, Susan Hawk and Brian Coe were engaged in what had quickly become their favorite activity. Trashing their fellow troupe member Shawn Foley. One was indignant that it was Shawn who was allowed to make the speech. Another complained how he simply skipped out on them without so much as a good bye, not that they would have cared but it was still considered to be at best rude and insensitive. Every minute another grievance was added to their list of crimes against Shawn.

. From up in the rafters Catsy could feel the dark powers gaining strength. She was surprised that absolutely no prompting was needed on her part to make the power of the powder do its dirty work. When she was originally told of the plan she had difficulty believing that the natural ego's of the entertainers would be their downfall. That there would be natural petty jealousies that could be taken advantage of. Yet even she was amazed how quickly the power was rising in the threesome on the right of the stage while lying down on the other side their big man only showed traces of the power in his aura almost like he was trying to fight its influence. The power would spike up when he looked at the device he was holding in his right hand. Yet would go down slightly when he looked away. It might take him a while before his power would be completed but Catsy decided the best course of action was to stay away and let the play develop naturally.

Even when the sky cleared later on in the day Shawn and Mina decided they were having too much fun in the mall to head back outside. Each store was treated like an adventure. In time they made it to the movie theatre in the mall where they decided to take in a move. It came as a surprise that Shawn was more interested in seeing a romantic film, more of a 'chick flick' style with her, than a straight comedy.

By the time sun was beginning to make its decent over the horizon, the pair realized how little they had eaten that day. Outside of the popcorn and drinks at the theatre the consumption of food had not been a high priority for either figure. They passed by several of the stands in the food court of the mall and headed to a sushi restaurant that looked quite promising. Inside since Shawn knew little about the difference between different styles of the raw fish, Mina did most of the ordering for both parties.

Waiting for their order a disc jockey had begun asking for volunteers to sing karaoke. Everyone in the room was hesitant to be the first person to sing that night. The individual running the show didn't seem shy about getting someone to start the festivities. With the table Mina and Shawn were sitting at being closest to the dais he approached the pair. He warmly and politely put out an invitation

"Say young man. How would you like to get us started here tonight. Sing something to the pretty lady."

Mina didn't need to look to know what Shawn's reaction would be. The last thing he needed was for anybody to recognize him. Even in his disguise the chance to slip up and expose who he was presented a frightening prospect. Something he wanted to avoid at all possible costs. The quick thinking young women presented a counter offer.

"Actually he doesn't like to sing that much…..but I do. Can I?"

The disc jockey wasn't fussy about who got the ball rolling for the evening. He realized that the first singer usually helped set the mood making more people want to participate. He helped her up from her chair and introduced her to the crowd. Then she whispered something into the man's ear. He nodded affirmatively and she gave a knowing smile to Shawn as she took her place in front of the microphone. From his seat Shawn waited to see what song she was going to do. On one of the monitors his answer came and he returned with an even wider grin than his female counterpart.

'Dancing Queen' by ABBA

The music began to play. In her head Mina began to count out the beats of the intro music before her first note needed to be sung. Four bars in four-four time. Sixteen beats in all. She didn't need to look at the monitor to see the words. It was etched into her heart a long time ago.

**_You can dance, you can jive, having the time of your life_**

_**See that girl, watch the scene, dig in the dancing queen.**_

It was back in England where he learned the song. One of the classes required by the school she was attending was some form of music. There were various choirs and groups for her to choose from. It was announced that at the end of the semester the choir was going to be doing a tribute to the Swedish group ABBA and that they would be doing a medley of their hits. The news was greeted with enthusiasm by the class. Then came the announcement that one of the singers in the class would be doing a solo of one of their most popular hits, 'Dancing Queen' to close their segment. Mina was one of twenty plus hopefuls who signed up for the audition the following monday. To that point the teacher had praised the quality of her voice in private but would it stand up to the competition from so many candidates? For as long as she could remember she wanted to be a pop idol and this was the chance to start making that dream a reality.

Once school let out on the Friday before the audition Mina ran back home and began to practice memorizing the lyrics to the song. Her parents were very supportive of her desire to win the solo spot. Still she wish she had something else. Some special edge to help her in the quest. Two hours after locking herself in her room she took a break and relaxed with Artemis who never minded listening to his female friends singing she asked him if there was anything she could do to improve her chances at the audition.

"I'm not the one who should advise you on this. To be honest Shawn would be the expert to tap into. He's the one who performs for a living."

Mina's eye's widened to not have thought of such an obvious answer for herself. She went downstairs to the phone and dialed.

"Laff Factory reservations, hello.",came a voice on the other side of the line.

"Hello, is Shawn there? If so can you tell him Mina is calling?",she asked.

She was put on hold for a few minutes and when the connection was reattached she heard a familiar voice.

"What's up sweet cheeks."

"Shawn, I need your help with something."

She went on to explain the situation about the audition to take place on Monday. Part of her expected Shawn to say that she shouldn't worry and she'd be fine. Instead he said that if she was **_really_** serious about getting help to be at the Laff Factory at 10 am the next day.

**_Friday night and the lights are low_**. **_Looking out for a place to go_**

**_Where they play the right music, getting in the swing._**

**_You come in to look for a king_**.

Mina actually arrive fifteen minutes early on Saturday and was surprised when not only Shawn but Gator too. Both men looked at their watches and Shawn held out his hand where Gator placed some money into it. Mina looked at the pair in confusion.

"Had a little bet with Gator that you'd actually would be here 10 minutes before we agreed. So are you ready?", he asked.

Nodding affirmatively the trio went inside the empty theatre. Gator made his way over to the sound room while Mina and Shawn worked their way to the performers ramp next to the stage.

"Now before we begin Mina I must explain a few things to you. We're not doing this to teach you how to be a better singer."

That statement disappointed Mina. If that was the case what was she doing here so early in the morning?

"Asking either of us to make you a better singer would be like asking a plumber how to be a surgeon. Both are honorable occupations but hardly compatible. What we CAN do is teach you how to perform, how to work a crowd. This will give you an advantage, an upper hand if you would at your audition over the others."

As the pair reached the stage Shawn motioned with his hand to the tables and chairs of the empty audience .

"First let me clear up something off the bat. If you feel nervous when you get called out for your audition that is natural. I have yet to meet a good performer who didn't get nervous at some point before or even during a show. Some might be better at hiding it than others but we all get nervous."

She looked at Shawn with surprise. As often as she had seen him do his shows he never seemed like the type of person who would ever be nervous or even apprehensive. The look was easily registered to Shawn's eyes.

"Yes, I still get scared even these days. At least the fear isn't so bad that I get nauseous and have to throw up like I did my first month but its still there."

Just then a voice over the P.A. interrupted him.

"One month? It was closer to three. You were the vomit machine back then."

Mina giggled while Shawn rolled his eyes replying,

"Thank you for giving her THAT visual Gator. Still what he said is true. I did get that scared when I use to perform. There has yet to be a show where I didn't scare myself to pieces. I like to think I'm that way because I care about my performance. The day I stop being scared is the day that perhaps I should start looking for a new line of work because it could mean I don't care anymore. So just realize that being scared is normal and that there is nothing wrong with it."

**_Anybody could be that guy. Night is young and the music's high_**

**_With a bit of rock music, everything is fine_**

**_You're in the mood for a dance, and when you get the chance._**

For the next few hours Shawn and Gator worked with the teenager on how to be a performer. They showed tricks about scanning the audience. Telling her to look them into the eye. To smile and let the audience think she's having the time of her life. They also shared some personal beliefs they had about performing.

"I've heard some instructors say that to make yourself calm you should imagine the audience in their underwear. That isn't the sort of image you want when you're single and you see a hot girl in the front row.", reflected Gator.

Shawn was less crude with his remarks.

"Singing isn't just from the diaphragm, it isn't just from your voice. You want to make an impact with a song? You want to make people leave the show going WOW! Sing from your heart as well. However the song affects you feel it in your heart and let that heart come out in your performance. If a song makes you feel love, show that love. If a song makes you think of fear let them feel the fear. There are a lot of people who can sing great in the shower but put a few people in front of them and they get a lump in their throat. Think of the stage as your personal shower…..er keeping your clothes on of course.

**_You are the dancing queen, young and sweet, only seventeen._**

_**Dancing queen, feel the beat from the tambourine, oh yeah.**_

_**You can dance, you can jive, having the time of your life.**_

**_See that girl, watch that scene, dig it the dancing queen_**.

The practice went for several hours. Even when Gator and Shawn suggested they stop to let her catch her breath or even for a meal break she didn't want to. She never realized all that work that went into a performance before. Never in her wildest dreams did she realize why some people were meant to be performers while others could only dream and fantasize about it. How performance was just as much about attitude as it was about talent. The hours seemed to fly by and only when they had no choice but to stop so Shawn and Gator could get themselves prepared for the show that night.

As Shawn escorted her home he offered her one final piece of advice.

"I know you're dream is to be a pop idol when you return to Japan. I personally think you have a strong chance for it. Just remember my personal three rules for success. Rule #1: Be your biggest fan. Being a fan of your work doesn't make you egotistical unless you let it get out of hand. You can do that by following rule #2. That is be your harshest critic. You've seen me get all over myself for some pretty small mistakes sometimes. Then you'd try to cheer me up saying it was no big deal, that nobody noticed. Well I noticed and by being so critical of my own work it prevents me from getting sloppy or lax in my performing. Also it helps prevent me from making the same mistake in a future performance that others could know about. Rule #3: Don't B.S. the audience. In your case sing about what you know, sing about your passions. What makes you passionate. You sing about things you don't know about yourself the audience will figure it out sooner or later, and when they do your credibility with the crowd drops like a lead brick. They'll never trust you again."

**_You're a teaser, you turn them on. _**

_**Leave them burning and then you're gone.**_

_**Looking out for another, anyone will do**_

When the audition came around Monday Mina was quite prepared for what to expect. She watched with interest as many of the things they predicted happened right in front of her eyes. Girls who normally sang very well in choir looked out to the sea of seats and in their eyes she could see the fear and concern in their eyes. Some sang slightly off key, others couldn't seem to project their voice the way they wanted too. One girl simply looked at the teacher sitting in the middle of the auditorium while doing her song.

When it was Mina's turn she kept remembering the phrase 'from the heart. From the heart.' and all the other lessons Shawn and Gator crammed into her brain that Saturday. She felt the nerves in her stomach and told herself its all right. it's a natural thing.

**_You're in the mood for a dance_**

**_and when you get the chance._**

The audition went better than she could have imagined. Her singing was strong. She held the notes she needed to long enough to give them a full impact. She looked around the auditorium as if a sold out crowd was there to listen instead of row after row of empty seats. She sang with confidence and belief in herself, so when it was over she stood there thinking it would take a major effort for anyone else to knock her off this day. Even the teachers bland comment of thanks but with no praise didn't dampen her spirits.

Later in the week when it was confirmed that she had won the solo role she was so excited that when school was over she ran full speed to the alleyway behind Laff Factory where she knew several members were packing up the van for a road show including. She screamed in joy announcing the good news to Shawn and Gator. Practically flying into their arms she thanked them for all the help they had given her and how much she owed them for this moment. She also promised she'd make them proud of her when the school show arrived.

**_You are the dancing queen, young and sweet only seventeen_**

**_Dancing queen, feel the beat from the tambourine._**

In the month leading up to the performance Mina worked very hard on her solo. Shawn informed her that he would try to get one of the other cast members to take his place in his show that night so he could be there for her debut but that he couldn't guarantee it. The night of the show Shawn was not only at the show but sitting in the front row center with Gator right next to him. When it came time for her solo she looked down at Shawn who placed his right hand over his heart. The performance didn't disappoint anybody that night. After the initial nerves hit she knew what to do and she began to sing her heart out When the final notes hit she took her bows to the crowd who gave her a standing ovation knowing they had just heard something very special.

After the show was over with Shawn and Gator came back to visit each giving her a dozen long stem roses for that nights diva. It was an evening she could never forget and she wondered if she'd ever be able to repay Shawn and Gator.

**_You can dance, you can jive, having the time of your life._**

**_See that girl, watch that scene, dig in the dancing queen._**

Returning to the present the crowd that night gave only polite applause. Of course her most important reaction was from the person right in front of her. Under his breath she could read his lips going 'WOW!'

"Wow! Is that really me?",Artemis asked.

Rei removed the mirror to show off the new Artemis. The cat had a new look that almost didn't make him recognizable. A cat so clean that he gave off a glow in the light coming in from the window. His fur blow dried so that it looked puffed out almost like he was 10 pounds heavier. But so soft to the touch. Even Luna was so amazed by the transformation that she couldn't think of a snickering comment to make. This new Artemis was definitely a hot looking cat.

"Now we just need to keep him from getting dirty before Mina could see him.",suggested Lita.

It was past 8 pm when Mina and Shawn left the mall. Taking advantage of the warm air even in the darkness they decided to take a stroll together back to Mina's house. Even at their slow pace they would be at her place. Neither had a complaint about the time spent together that day even with the few bumps along the way. For Shawn it was the first time in a long time he had felt like he had a normal day. For Mina it had been too long for her to have a real date, hoping the two could do something like this more often in the future.

Out of nowhere a loud chirping sound was heard of out Shawn's pants packet. It alarmed Mina because of its surprise. Shawn tried to downplay his disappointment. Reaching into his pocket he produced his cellular phone which was still beeping. He looked at the device in contempt for another chirping beep before answering.

"Flake here."

Mina tried to listen in on who could be calling him and killing their evening.

"Gator, isn't there a chance we could postpone this until the morning?…..No way huh."

Shawn let out a sigh of disappointment before acknowledging the message. He looked at the lady beside him feeling uncomfortable to even asking her to accept this detour. Even though she stated it was all right with her he felt badly about the complication.

Closing the phone on his end Jack Gator raised his head and announced Shawn Foley's imminent arrival

The news was greeted with a sick, evil smile from Catsy.

"Wonderful my servants. Wonderful. Now you all know what to do when he gets here."

All four members chuckled evilly.

"Kill Flake."


	5. Fight in the Factory

Chapter 5: Fight in the Factory

Among the couples walking down the street nobody could have known that two of the individuals were the famous celebrities Sailor Venus and Shawn "The Flake" Foley. In her regular guise as Mina Aino the scout of love could easily blend in. She was just another pretty blonde but nobody would be able to connect the face to the Sailor Scout. The disguise by Shawn Foley had held up well over the course of the day and to this point nobody had determined his true identity.

The pair entered the alleyway approaching the employee's side door of The Laff Factory. The door was slightly ajar, allowing the pair easy access to enter. Before opening the door fully Shawn looked through the crack apparently looking for something.

"Is something wrong?", asked Mina.

Shawn simply shrugged his shoulders.

"Maybe I'm just being paranoid here but we've had a security procedure throughout this tour not to leave any door open without a security guard present. "

Shawn opened the door calling out to his fellow performers. When nobody responded, he called out a second time. Again, the only response was that of silence.

"Something's wrong. Let's get out of here.", he quickly concluded.

The pair turned around to walk away when they saw three figures coming towards them within the alley.. In the darkness of the night with only the reflection of the moon giving off any light all they could see was the shadows of the approaching figures. Shawn held his hand above his eye's to cut down on the glare from the moonlight as he thought he began to recognize the figures.

"Brian? …..Susan? …..Terri?", he asked.

The figures didn't respond so without asking he grabbed Mina's arm and pulled her into the theatre backstage. Closing the door behind him the pair tried to make sense of what was happening. They could hear the loud banging of the door. Obviously whatever was out there was trying to get in and the pair had no inclination of wanting to be nearby if it were to happen. Together they made their way up the aisle ready to exit via the front door.

Swinging open the door to the outer lobby they were greeted by the hulking mass of Gator. At least what was before them possessed the size, mass, and physique of the gargantuan Australian. Yet his skin had taken on a moldy looking green color from head to toe. He moved towards the couple who without a moment's hesitation began to run up the staircase to the upper balcony. Luckily the Gator doppelganger didn't posses the speed of the Gator who wasn't the swiftest afoot to begin with so the pair knew so it was easy to outrun him up the steps. Once on top they were able to see towards the stage where the three figures that had caused them to enter the theatre in the first place had broken through the door. Each figure looking like a member of the Laff Factory entourage yet acquiring the same greenish body.

Seeing the fake Gator getting near the top of the steps Shawn signaled to Mina to follow him through another door. When the pair entered the room, he closed, locked, and barricaded the door by wedging a chair against the knob. They looked for a 2nd door to leave only to find that the pair had trapped themselves. The door clanged loudly as the sound of a fist came in direct contact with it.

"There's a crazy man in the Factory and it's no longer me.", responded Shawn.

Behind his attempt at bravery she could hear the concern of his voice. He was trying hard to keep Mina calm perhaps concerned of her reaction to the situation they were in. Her experiences told her instantly that this wasn't an ordinary foe. It had to be the negaverse and Shawn was out of his league in trying to fight them.

She could feel the transformation pen in her purse. If need be she knew there was an option available to her. She could change into Sailor Venus which would improve the deficit they were facing. Yet in the same moment she thought of this a second thought ran through her mind. How would Shawn react to the news? If the situation was normal there would be the natural shock of learning the truth, yet this time the situation was anything but normal. As Sailor Venus she had appeared to him on several occasions without admitting her duel personality. Would he feel betrayed? Would he feel like his emotions had being taken advantage of? She would have to hope that a situation would develop that would allow her to transform in secret.

During her thought process Shawn had found a tool box under the stool of the sound board. Opening it he hunted for something. Finding a wrench he held it in his hand as if it were a weapon that could be used to defend them. Mina wondered how such an item could possibly help them. Moving around her without conversation he approached a nearby window and began knocking the glass out with the wrench. He was clearing out a possible escape route but she looked out and realized that they couldn't jump out. They were on the equivalent of the 4th floor. She looked to see if perhaps there was a rope in the area for them to climb down. There was none that she could spot, yet there was obviously a plan going through the mind of her man even as the banging of the door became more frequent and thunderous..

"Mina, have you ever repelled before?", he asked quickly.

She shook her head negatively

Shawn reached underneath and began to pull out an extension cord. He tied one end around her waist and put her hands against the knot he made.

"Whatever you do hang on tight. This isn't as secure as a rope so I can't be certain of this knot. Whatever happens don't let go. I'll lower you down. You just walk backwards against the wall and if you're nervous for crying out loud don't look down."

"But how will you get down?", she asked

For a guy who has climbed mountains it'll be easy. All I need are some hand and foot holds. Building's like this will be a snap."

Shawn examined the extension cord and mumbled to himself. It appeared as if he was trying to determine if there was enough to do the job. His reaction indicated he wasn't certain but the continued banging of the door brought him to the realization that they were running out of time and that they had to act now. Removing his jacket he placed it over the window to give Mina a little extra protection as she climbed out from any glass he might have failed to miss in their opening.

As he held her hand to assist her out the window her worry for him was too much to bear. She thrusted forward kissing him as though if she might not get another chance. She was honestly scared of the position he was putting himself in. If there was any fear or concern in his body he hid it very well. He held her two hands tenderly in his own.

"It'll be all right. You're not getting rid of me this easily.", he shakily smiled.

Another slam against the door brought the pair back into the reality of their situation. Placing Mina on top of his jacket over the window he got a good grip on the extension cord and began the process of lowering her. When he couldn't see her anymore he called out to make sure she was doing all right and how far she was from the ground. The progress felt excruciating slow. She wanted to run down the side of the wall but she could only descend as fast as the extension cord was being fed. Even as she was being lowered she could continue hearing the slamming of the door. She prayed the makeshift barricade would hold just long enough for Shawn to get out of there.

When her foot struck street level she yelled up that she was safe. A second later the rest of the extension cord came falling out of the window. Her first reaction was one of panic in fear that Shawn had been captured after all. Then she saw a pair of legs protruding out of the window, followed by the other portions of Shawn's body. His legs looking for some comfortable foot holds before beginning lowering himself.

He found the holds he was looking for and removed his hands from the to some other bricks that would work for him. His jacket was pulled off and fluttered down to the ground. Another few feet to go and the scare would be over.

While double checking his feet for the next move a humongous hand came out of the window and grabbed Shawn tightly by his shirt and began to pull him upwards. From the opening the head of the greenish Gator was seen popping out looking with malicious intent on his prey. Shawn drew a hand back and swung with all his force towards the head but the angle of the blow and his inferior positioning made the pummeling jolts ineffective. Shawn wanted to let out a scream of panic but a hand now grasping his throat made such a move futile.

All Mina could do was watch helplessly as Shawn was being pulled back into the window, into the theatre, back into danger. Then she could hear his scream quite clearly and her response was immediate. Taking her transformation pen out of her purse she held it upwards and pronounced.

"Venus Power!"

From her position orange lights and stars blazed around the area allowing Mina Aino to convert into Sailor Venus. After the transformation she realized what a foolish thing she did. If anybody had seen what she did her secret identity would have been compromised. Looking around she realized that nobody could have seen her actions. She then grabbed her communicator and signaled the other scouts.

"It's Venus. Shawn's in trouble at the Laff Factory. Hurry."

Amy Anderson was the first to receive the signal. She had just finished cleaning up the house from the party for Artemis. When her mother would come home from her shift in the morning there would be no signs of any sort of social gathering having taken place in the home. She heard the communicator go off and quickly pressed the button

"It's Venus. Shawn's in trouble at the Laff Factory. Hurry."

Pulling out her transformation pen she held it above her head and proclaimed.

"Mercury Power!"

Rei Hino had returned to the Cherry Hill's Temple preparing for a bath. Sliding the door to her room she checked to make sure nobody would see her just in her towel as she made the trek to the bathroom. It bothered her a little bit when her Grandfather would spot her but her real embarrassment would be if Chad had gotten a look at her. While he was no peeping pervert it still was uncomfortable during the rare times their paths crossed in this manner.

Determining all was well she pushed the door all the way open when she heard the beeping of the communicator. Upon activation she heard the news.

"It's Venus. Shawn's in trouble at the Laff Factory. Hurry."

The bath would have to wait until later. Under her pillow she pulled out her transformation pen and raised it announcing

"Mar's Power!"

Lita Kino carried Artemis in her arms on the way back to the Aino residence when she got the call.

"It's Venus. Shawn's in trouble at the Laff Factory. Hurry."

The news struck fear into the heart of the cat. As often as she had thrust herself into danger and came out unscathed it always worried him. Something felt different this time. He had a disquieting feeling. Perhaps it was an imaginary misgiving on his part but he felt something in his guts that she needed him now.

Squirming mightily he escaped Lita's grasp and began running towards the Laff Factory with a frantic Lita chasing after him calling his name to come back. She came to realize where he was going and knew it was time for her to transform herself.

As Artemis crossed a street the blaring of a car horn and skidding tires scared the white cat away from the impact of tires from the oncoming car. He was so panic stricken that he didn't even notice the danger until it was almost too late. Lita finally caught up with him. Scooping him up in her arms she continued her rush to the Laff Factory stopping only long enough to transform into Sailor Jupiter.

Back at Serena's house the scout leader opened the door to Rini's room just a crack to allow herself a chance to check on the little girl who laid down in peaceful slumber. Ever since the knowledge that this little lady was the daughter of Serena and Darien in the future she had found herself doing many of the things her own mother use to do with her when she was that age. Sometimes she wondered if Rini was really asleep or simply faking it like Serena sometimes did when she knew her mother was checking on her. It didn't matter if the little one was faking it or not. Serena simply took the enjoyment of the moment.

The communicator began to beep and before it had a chance to wake up the future daughter Serena closed the door then making sure nobody could eavesdrop turned on the device.

"It's Venus. Shawn's in trouble at the Laff Factory. Hurry."

There was no time to lose. Sailor Moon was going to be needed this night.

With a mighty leap Sailor Venus reentered the broken window at the Laff Factory. She quickly inspected the area. The door that allowed entry into the sound booth had been smashed and was now lying bent and contorted across the entry access. The signs of a struggle were everywhere. There was damage everywhere.

Cautiously she went back through the doorway and gasped when she saw Shawn being carried effortlessly by the green Gator. Though he continued to struggle he had been bound thoroughly from head to toe and couldn't loosen the restraints. At the front of the stage he was dumped unceremoniously. The figures surrounded him and began to laugh in a most unpleasant manner. The acoustics of the theatre allowed the sound from the area to travel quite well to her position.

"Look how the mighty have fallen. Maybe you can get all your adoring fans to come and save your backside.", suggested the Susan Hawk clone.

"Oh how the mighty have fallen indeed. Perhaps now **_your highness_** you'll feel more compelled to spend a bit more time with us little people.", snidely remarked Brian Coe.

From her vantage point she could see Shawn's reaction. He was afraid of what these associates might have in mind. Worse that no matter what those plans involved that in his current status he was unable to do a thing to stop it. He couldn't fight so many and his incapacity was complete so he couldn't even run away from the situation as he looked for a way to unbind himself.

So intensely focused on the situation she didn't realize her own situation. It wasn't until it was too late that she felt the presence of another. She tried to turn around but before she could succeed she felt a thudding blow to the back of her head. In spite of her efforts she felt herself falling into a state of unconsciousness.

When she awoke again Sailor Venus found herself tied up, blindfolded, gagged and laid down. She could hear the voice of Shawn calling out if she was all right which meant he had to be nearby..

"Oh, isn't this just delicious. Not only will be able to do away with the 'prince of comedy' but I'll be able to throw a sailor scout into the bargain as well. This is certainly one of life's little bonus's. I bet you would love me to tell you what's going to happen next. Well I won't do that. Besides you'll figure it out fast enough. Not that you'll be able to stop it. Right Rancor?"

From the front row the greenish figures began to expand, then the moss rose upwards releasing the real Laff Factory performer's from their grasp. Now drained of their energy they collapsed into sleep which Venus knew would last a considerable amount of time.

"Yes, my mistress.", responded Rancor in a deep menacing voice.

The greenish figure shot flames from it's figures . The flames caught the bottom of the curtains catching them on fire. She could hear the whoosh and crackling of the fire. The thought horrified Venus. They were going to burn down the Laff Factory with the member's and her inside. She continued to thrash about looking for some way to loosen the binds that held her but to no avail.

As the flames starting growing and shooting up she could hear the coughs of Shawn right next to her. He was starting to choke on the smoke beginning to fill the area. It caused her to redouble her efforts to get free but it wouldn't happen.

Bound as she was Venus didn't see what took place next. Her ears though could plainly hear the crackling of the thunder. She wondered if the storms have returned until she heard a voice pronouncing,

"Sparkling Wide Pressure!"

It eased her fear. Jupiter was already here which meant that soon the other scouts would arrive as well. Still she needed to escape her confinement. Whoever had tied these knots were definitely an expert.

"Don't move. I'll get you loose."

The voice though whispered was quite familiar. It was Artemis. She wanted to say his name but with Shawn still nearby she didn't dare. She listened to hear his struggles to breath over Artemis's struggled grunts as his claws and teeth were ripping into the rope.

In the meantime Jupiter continued to battle the evil Rancor with a combination of long range thunder attacks and when she could get close enough hand to hand fisticuffs. The monster was a strong one. When it stuck Jupiter she could feel the blows. It took all her agility to avoid the fire attacks and sometimes its fists found its mark on her face and body. By herself she could only fight a delaying action, to stall for time until she could receive backup from the others.

Working as best he could Artemis couldn't cut through the entire rope so he worked to tear it apart thread by thread hoping to weaken it enough so that Venus's attempts to break it would be successful. With a loud popping sound the rope around her wrists snapped . She wasted no time removing the blindfold from her eye's to reveal a horrifying sight. The fire within the building was spreading at with alarming speed endangering all of them. Freeing her ankles she began to make quick work of the bindings around Shawn. When he was free Venus got right to the point.

"Get the hell out of here."

She didn't wait for him to acknowledge the statement before leaping into the battle with Jupiter. Shawn began to heed her words when he saw his fellow performers lying motionless. They would die if they stayed. Ignoring the reality of his situation Shawn jumped down and tried to grab Gator. Between his weight and his mass there was no way to hoist and carry the big man. Instead he raised the Aussie to a sitting position, put his arms around him in a Heimlich style maneuver and began to drag him backwards.

The next scout to arrive was Sailor Mercury. She saw the flames beginning to shoot through the woodwork and brick construction She looked around the outside ever so briefly to see if there was any indication of the fire department being nearby to fight the flames. There were no trucks visible and no wailing sounds of sirens that would signal their approach.

Seconds later Sailor Mars arrived on the scene. Without a second to waste she tried to break open the door to the Laff Factory entrance only to be blown back by the force of the fire. Mar's was lucky that Mercury was nearby to catch her before she tumbled too badly.

."Smooth move pyro.", sarcastically remarked Sailor Moon who had arrived just in time to see what had happened.

"Will you shut up! You heard Venus. We've got problems inside.", angrily retorted Mars.

"We need to find another entrance and fast. There is no way to get in through the front now.", surmised Mercury.

She looked to her partners to see if they knew another way in. Never having been here before Sailor Moon didn't know the area. For a moment Sailor Mars drew a blank until she remembered the blessing.

"I almost forgot. There is an employee entrance. Let's make contact there."

Moving swiftly Sailor Mar's directed her cohorts to the narrow alley at the side of the building where smoke was still billowing out but there were no flames to block their path. Instead to their horror a new complication arose inside the middle of the doorway laid the prone body of Gator while a pace beyond that Shawn had collapsed into unconsciousness. The pair weren't alone. Licking the face of his rival Artemis was trying to do what he could to revive the comic but to no avail. He looked almost relieved to see the scouts.

"You've got to help him. He's not breathing..', he explained.

Two of the scouts looked down on the situation knowing that they could do nothing. If the problem was spiritual Sailor Mars could have handled it easily. There was no power available to any of the scouts that could help in this situation. However while their was no way to help as a Sailor Mercury the knowledge and experience of Amy Anderson could save him. She kneeled down and checked the two men. Gator while unconscious was breathing on his own. Flake however had stopped breathing.

"How long has he been like this?", she asked.

"About a minute I think. He tried to drag the big guy out. He started coughing pretty bad and as soon as the two had come out the door he passed out. I've been trying to wake him up but he won't respond."

"That's all right. That's all I need to know. You two go inside. I can handle things here. I'll join you as soon as I can.", instructed Mercury.

The other scouts looked perplexed as their friend stuck her fingers into Shawn's mouth to clear any possible obstruction. Tilting the head back she pinched off his nose, then took a deep breath and blew directly into his mouth. Turning her head she listened for the exhale of the breath. She then moved down a little and placed her hands over the ribs where the heart would be located and proceeded to push down on the area 5 times before delivering another breath to him. Where scout power was ineffective Sailor Mercury relied on her knowledge and practice of cardio pulmonary resuscitation. For as long as she could remember she studied, watched her mother, and wanted to save lives as a doctor. Now was the time when she would learn in the most vital of moments if she would be worthy of her goal. The others realized that their presence would do nothing to improve the situation here and entered the theatre.

Inside the theatre the battle continued to rage among the flames. Though Venus and Jupiter were putting up a good fight Rancor was dishing out as much punishment as she was receiving. The pair had to be very quick on their feet or the monster might destroy them with the fire attacks. Even when the blow missed the target it caused the fire danger inside the theatre to worsen. Unable to fight for fear she would increase the hazardous conditions in which they were combating with her fire based attacks Sailor Mars worked to rescue the remaining members of the Laff Factory who in their unconscious states knew nothing of the peril they were in. One by one Mar's went into the fiery building grabbing each of the performers and brought them out to Amy who continued her efforts to revive Shawn.

Through it all Artemis stood by watching Sailor Mercury continue the fight to keep  
Shawn alive. He felt the conflict of his emotions. He felt more than a little guilty that there was a part of him who wanted Shawn to lose this battle but when he started thinking that way his thoughts reverted to Mina and how it would affect her. He realized that even though both were competing for Mina's heart he couldn't wish the death of his rival. He had to survive.

"Come on Shawn, live. Don't do this to her. Don't do this to me. I couldn't fight you as a memory, what chance would I have fighting you as a martyr?", Artemis finally spoke to the unconscious figure.

Sailor Mercury listened to the figure but didn't respond. Over and over she repeated the process of trying to breathe life back into the man. Even with her arms tiring from the effort she never wavered in her determination. After all one of the first things she learned was to never stop until a proper emergency team could take over. Also she didn't want to be the one to say to Venus later that she had stopped trying. She would continue until her arms would have fallen off her body before doing that. She empathize with the feelings Artemis was going through. .While she continued working Artemis continued addressing his adversary.

"Come on! Fight damn you. There is a lady out there who loves you! Show some fight! Fight for her! Open your eyes! Breath damn you! Open your eye's you son of a……"

"That's enough!", Mercury reproved

After a momentary pause to impart another breath into Shawn's body she continued in a calmer, sympathetic manner.

"Besides, I haven't learned how to let someone die yet. So I have no choice but to save him."

Within the burning auditorium Sailor Moon, Jupiter, and Venus fought valiantly against Rancor. However the unavailability of two of their members limited their options and the hostilities of the fiery environment they were in made the battle difficult. The ever increasing heat was taxing on their collective stamina while Rancor seem not only oblivious to it but actually seemed to draw additional strength from it.

The monster moved with amazing agility to avoid Jupiter's thunder attacks, and the ability to absorb the hand to hand blows from the largest of the scouts. Sailor Moon and Sailor Venus had an even more difficult time in dealing with their opponent. Sometimes it seemed like they were trying not to get in each other's way as opposed to fighting their enemy.

The heat inside the fighting inside the building for the sailor scouts oppressive. The breathing of all the scouts became labored in the fighting. Sweat rolled off their heads into their eyes making their vision at times blurry.. It was only a matter of time before one of the attacks from Rancor found its mark in the form of their leader Sailor Moon. A fireball struck their pig tailed leader with an impact that sent her crashing into the seats. Sailor Jupiter & Venus saw the whole thing and turned around long enough to give their opponent a better chance of attacking them. Before their attention could return to the monster each were struck. Jupiter caught the attack in its full amount. Venus was only able to deflect enough of the damage to allow her to brace herself for the impact against the front of the stage. Sailor Venus while still shaken up was at least conscious . She looked at the carnage around her. Sailor Moon and Jupiter were down for the count. Sailor Mars was now attempting to rescue their fallen comrades. She noticed movement and turned her head to see Mercury working on Shawn. Everyone she cared about had been hurt because of this monster.

Feeling the anger rising within her Sailor Venus found the strength to stand and began to snarl at the monster. Her teeth gnashing back and forth. Then came the anger, the rage, the pain, every emotion multiplied to the tenth power. With a Valkyries scream she kicked off from the stage towards the monster who found itself surprised that anybody could have survived her blows. The monster had not expected any further attacks to come from so close. Worse when Venus's fist caught Rancor on the jaw it was felt with more force than anything she had encountered .

No longer was she fighting like a sailor scout. No longer fighting with her brains more than brawn. Sailor Venus fought like a lovesick girl. After the initial blow to Rancor's jaw, she moved her knees in jackhammer fashion towards the gut taking the air away from her foe. Grabbing the monster by its arm with a mighty heave the blonde haired hero threw her opponent the length of the auditorium. Only the concrete and brick wall on the other side stopped the creature's progress.. With blood and fire in her eye's, Venus charged ready to finish the battle. The damage the monster had received made it unable to avoid neither the football tackle nor the flurry of fists raining down upon its head.

'I…..WON'T…..LET…..YOU…..DESTROY…..SHAWNS…..DREAM!!!!!"

Venus would have continues to physically trash the monster until it was little more than a spot on the floor if it wasn't for the actions of Sailor Mar's and Mercury. In her wrath she had ignored the fact that the building was starting to fall apart around her. Beams were crashing from the ceiling. The curtain were little more that tattered shells of their former glory. Yet Mars and Mercury had to struggle with all their strength to budge their friend away who was still on an adrenaline rush.

'We've got to get out of here. It is no longer safe.!", pleaded Sailor Mar's.

"You've done all you can here.', added Sailor Mercury.

However their words didn't seem to reach the consciousness of their cohort. It wasn't until a fateful rumbling was heard and the section of wall in front of them started to give way. The monster had gotten to its feet just in time to turn around and see the wall come down up it. The facility was beginning the process of imploding unto itself.

"We need to get you out of here. Shawn needs you.". Beseeched Mercury.

The mentioning of Shawn's name brought Venus back to her senses. Even though it had been buried until the rubble she knew better than to hope that the monster had been destroyed. Only the silver imperial crystal had the power to make that happen and only Sailor Moon had the power to wield it. Yet time was a commodity that they had run out of.

The trio ran out of the dying building just ahead of the debris through the employee entrance. They didn't stop scampering until they had reached the street. Only then did they turn around to see the firefighters fleeing out of the front of the structure. They had abandoned their efforts to save the building itself and were doing all they could to prevent the fire from spreading to the businesses on the block. .

Venus looked around to seek Shawn out however in the confusion of firemen, police, and the press with their vehicles making the task difficult. Then she heard the sounds of sirens, saw the swirling lights of an ambulance slowly entering the area and medical personnel exiting the vehicle with a stretcher. A few moments later she saw a sight that threatened to take her breath away. The medical team was pulling a stretcher with Shawn laid on top of it. His body was covered up in a blanket and a mask connected to an oxygen tank was around his nose and mouth.

"He's fine Venus.", Sailor Mercury tried to assure her, "He seemed to have suffered from smoke inhalation. They're taking him to the hospital simply as a precaution. He's expected to be fine."

Even with the promise of his being all right Venus wanted to run to his side. To be with him on the trip to the hospital. Yet she knew such a scenario would not be allowed. She was not family. Venus began to feel a rubbing against her leg. Looking down she saw her faithful companion Artemis doing his best to offer her comfort. She picked up her feline and held it close to her body as tears began to fall from her eyes. Her grip on him was stronger than usual almost threatening to squeeze away his own breath. For her though it was a sacrifice he'd be willing to make for her again and again.

She finally spoke to her feline companion whispering in his ear, "Thank you."

"Your very welcome.", was his only response.

After the stretcher was placed into the ambulance the other members of the group were placed into the vehicle under their own power. They looked a little disheveled, a little confused over what had just happened. Otherwise they appeared to be physically sound. Artemis looked at the scene and spoke to Venus.

"If I were Shawn I'd be going out of my mind right now worrying about Mina. I'm sure it would do a world of good for him to see that she's all right."

Looking at her companion she knew that the words had to be difficult for him to speak. It took little logic to know that this was more for her benefit than his own. She glanced down and smiled.

"Thank you for understanding how much he needs me."

Running into a crevice between two buildings Sailor Venus ran between a pair of buildings only long enough to transform before running out as Mina. She bolted towards the ambulance shouting Shawn's name. They were about to close the rear doors when Gator heard her calling out and prevented the driver from securing the vehicle. She was not allowed to get any closer than the temporary police barricade that had been set up yet Gator nudged Shawn's shoulder and pointed to where she stood. She wasn't sure of what she saw but Mina would have sworn she saw a smile come across his lips then working his arm free from under the blanket, with Gator's help he raised it up and gave a pinky salute to his date before the doors were finally sealed and the group taken away.

Farther back the other scouts surrounded Artemis who turned his back to the scene. He walked away unable to keep himself from getting emotional. A pair of hands belonging to Sailor Jupiter swept him up and held him close.

"That was perhaps the noblest thing I've ever seen anybody do."

His response showed the strain of emotions though his voice.

"Thanks. Just get me out of here before I decide to chase after that ambulance."

Most of the troupe members were released the very next day but Shawn was kept a few days longer. When he was released eventually Mina made certain she was at the hospital when he was wheeled out. In fact 'K' had sent his private limo to pick the girl up. His face beamed when the door opened up and he saw the fair haired maiden sitting there. The other members of the troupe were also in the vehicle yet his eyes never left her as he climbed in.

They drove away heading back to the hotel when Shawn asked the question nobody waned to talk about.

"How is the Factory. Is it as bad as I've been hearing?", Shawn inquired.

None of the other members of the troupe could face him. None would answer the question. Finally it was Mina who had to break the news. She wished there was a way to say it that would spare his feelings.

"It's a complete loss. They say they're going to bulldoze it down and start rebuilding from scratch. I'm sorry."

She saw Shawn's head drop a little as the impact of her words struck him. Then to the surprise of everybody he called out to the limo driver to take the group to the site so he could observe the damage for himself. The others tried in vain to talk him out of this course of action to no avail. As the limo pulled up to the curb across the street from the venue Shawn got out of the vehicle to see how bad the damage was.

The theatre was now little more than a wooden framed skeleton of itself. The clean up crew were tossing charred parts of bricks into a pile where a massive front loader scooped up the debris to transfer its contents into a truck to be hauled away.

Mina got out of the car too to stand by her man. She could see the quivering of his lower lip. His eye's closed tightly trying to keep the tears within its ducts. Placing her hand against his heart she could feel the increased beating and higher pulse rate. All signs of a man who was about to lose control and cry. However as the groups leader he would do his best to be strong in the face of this disaster. It would have been all right with Mina if he let it all out right now. After all there was a loss here. Not a loss in human terms but still a loss. The battle a few nights earlier had not produced a true winner but there were losers. The troupe survived yet it couldn't be called a victory because Rancor got away.

She knew there were plans in the works to rebuild the Laff Factory. In that moment she made a private vow that for as long as she lived this place would be under her protection. That what happened a few nights earlier would not be duplicated. That somehow the vision Shawn had for this place would be realized. That the Laff Factory would live again.


	6. Epilogue

Chapter 6: Epilogue

Most of the Laff Factory troupe left a day later for their next stop in Singapore. The only exceptions were Gator who did some advance public relations work for the troupe in Australia, and Shawn who was given 2 additional days to spend with Mina. Eventually though he had to leave and rejoin the troupe.

The goodbyes were tough and very emotional but this time they were able to leave under must better circumstances than they had in England. In the end Shawn gave Mina his private e-mail address so they could keep in contact with a promise he would come back.

Every few days she got letter from Shawn via the internet letting her know how things were progressing with the tour. He talked about the good things and the bad with her. She also received a special surprise from him when on her birthday a package arrived for her. It was the same green kimono she had tried on during their little excursion to the mall. She found out later that he had saved the photo from his camera phone and had contacted the shop to purchase it, and then hold it until her special day arrived.

On Mina's side she made repeated visits to the construction site for the new Laff Factory building. It was quite common to see her in front of the location. She started becoming such a regular visitor to the site that the crew knew her by name. They would often wave hello to her and actually gave her a special hardhat with her name on it and the title 'honorary foreman'. With a little help from Ami and a digital camera she would take snapshots of the building when a new development took place such as a wall being completed or the painting of the exterior. She sent the pictures along with personal messages to Shawn in her responses to him.

A more important incident during this time was the elimination of the threat of the 4 sisters, Rubeus, and the Wiseman. One by one each of the sisters broke off their affiliation while their leaders were destroyed. Even with the victory Mina continued her daily pilgrimage to the construction site. In addition she would make several unauthorized trips inside the building under the guise of Sailor Venus. She would often stand on the stage, close her eyes and breathe deeply feeling the physical distance between her and Shawn lessening. She felt like she was breathing the same air that he experienced when he performed.

In late October the group's tour ended and he was back in England. While he expressed relief that the tour was over and seemed happy to be back with the complete group it didn't take long for the tone of his letters to start changing. After a year of working with the same four people he was finding it difficult readjusting to the styles of the new faces the group had hired and even some of the established entertainers made for many awkward moments. It appeared that he wasn't the only performer having difficulty in the transformation. She was shocked when he wrote that Gator had left the troupe to return home to Australia for good. Then it was Susan and Terri who ended their association. He would never say it openly in his letters but his mood seemed to indicate that part of him wanted to leave too. Only Brian Coe seemed to make the integration back into the fold easily.

There was a shriek of joy when she got an e-mail from him with the news that he was going to be coming back to Tokyo at the end of the year to be the master of ceremonies for the reopening of The Laff Factory. In the time leading up to his visit she spent lots of extra time with Artemis to combat any feelings of jealousy or bitterness over the arrival of his potential challenger.

Finally two days after Christmas came the big day. When his plane arrived Mina and her family were ushered at the airport by some officials to a nearby VIP room within the facility. When he arrived through a special door Mina ran up to him, throwing her arms around his neck and showering him with kisses. He did his best to return each kiss until he saw Mina's father giving him a look to stop.

During his stay the daily routine was basic. While Mina was in school, Shawn would be taking care of matters relating to the upcoming show. While he didn't know it Shawn was always under the watchful eyes of Artemis who followed him from a discrete distance to observe his behavior when Mina wasn't around. If the lad had any tendencies to have a wandering eye or a cheating heart he would make sure to discover it before he had the chance to break Mina's heart. Yet in every instance he proved himself to be trustworthy of her feelings. Eventually he gave up trying to find the chink in his armor and tried his best to simply be happy for Mina, even if it meant not being the cause.

After her day at school Shawn was always there at the school gates to greet her with a huge hug and soft kiss. She enjoyed the walks home with him where her family would be waiting with a hot, home cooked meal. The extra efforts by Mina's parents never went unnoticed or unappreciative. He was thankful for the home cooked meals which while normally simple fare made his taste buds dance.

The rest of the scouts all got a chance to meet the young man up close during this time. On the Saturday afternoon Lita prepared a special picnic lunch for the group and their various boyfriends while gazing at the cherry blossoms. They found him to be everything Mina had bragged about and more. Near the end of the picnic while Shawn went to get some more drinks Mina turned to Ami and thanked her fall all she had done to make these moments possible.

Finally came the night of the big show on New Years Eve. It was the only time during his visit that Shawn didn't meet Mina at the school. Not that she expected it to happen. She could sense that he would be getting into his performing mindset before then. Putting on her most beautiful dress and with her mothers assistance made her up to look absolutely ravishing. Before they left there was a knock at the door where a delivery boy brought a light pink corsage for Mina with a note from Shawn asking her to wear it. It added a breathtaking addition to the chiffon outfit. As promised a limo came by to pick Mina and her parents up and drive them to the gala affair.

At the Laff Factory Mina and her parents walked down the red carpet like any other VIP. She tried to stifle a giggle when she overheard a couple of people whispering among themselves who she could be. Inside the Factory they were given a program for the evening and were given a seat at one of the tables. Looking back and forth at the length of the new curtain she sought a glimpse of Shawn only succeeding when there were only a few minutes before show time. She almost didn't see him sticking his head out at the right end of the curtain but when she did she also saw the familiar pinky wave.

The debut show was a success in every sense. The crowd laughed in the right spots. The performers were energetic, and Shawn kept the pace moving at a fast clip so there would be little silent time between the routines. When the show ended there was little doubt that many of the people in the audience would want to come back again.

Mina and her parents stuck around for the 2nd part of the evening, the New Years Eve party. One by one the performers of the show made their way from the stage to mingle with the guests, dignitaries, and press. Some were interviewed and photographic flashes were everywhere. Within the sea of bodies though Mina couldn't find Shawn among them. At first she wasn't concerned but after 15 minutes had past and all the other performers were now among the guests she decided to see if anything was wrong.

Without anybody seeing her she went backstage and called out Shawn's name in a semi-whisper. It took only a brief amount of time before he acknowledged her. Taking his hands in hers she kissed him and congratulated him on the success of this first show. He graciously accepted her kudos but then asked if she would step outside with him for a few minutes. For a moment she wondered if he was scheming to get more romantic with her away from the prying eye's of her father but then she saw his eyes and realized from their tone that was on his mind was quite serious.

They stepped barely outside of the employee entrance. The weather was nice but very cold. The pair could see their breath coming out in the cold air. Shawn took the opportunity to wrap his tux jacket around the bare shoulders of his date. All the while seeking to explain what was on his mind.

"Mina, you know I'll be leaving in the next couple of day's right? How would you feel about my coming back in a couple of months for a longer stay?"

"I'd love that. How long would you be here?" she eagerly replied.

'Forever.', he deadpanned.

For a few moments Mina stood there in disbelief to what she had just heard.

"Cou…..could you say that again? I don't think I heard your right.'

Shawn bent over to Mina's ear and whispered softly into her ear.

"How would you feel if I came back here and lived here forever?'

"What's the punch line?' she finally asked expect this to be some sort of comic bit.

"No joke sweet cheeks. I am as serious as I've ever been in my left.'

Shawn went into the inner pocket of his tux that hung on Mina and pulled out a piece of paper that she never noticed while she wore the jacket. Unfolding it carefully he handed it to Mina to let her read its contents. It was a contract to work for 'K' on his show as a script writer.

"He apparently likes my work and wants me to work for him. If I accept his offer I'll be given a few months to get my affairs in order in England but then I could be back here for good.

'But…..what about performing/" ,she wanted to know

"I've been promised the chance to perform with these guys if I wanted to. To be honest though I think I've had enough of the performing for now. I don't feel about it the way I once did. I don't get those fears like I use to get. I've been making too many mistakes as of late. Plus I'm not feeling real about this anymore. I don't know if I simply need a break from the action or if this means I don't want it anymore but to be honest I haven't been that happy with things since the tour finished."

'Yes, I sort of sensed that in your e-mails.' ,she admitted.

"It's funny. I always dreamed of being a top dog in comedy, but it was like Gator use to tell me. Sometimes being top dog isn't everything its cracked up to be. If you're not the top dog the view never changes but when you're top dog there is always another dog trying to bite your backside."

The two stood in the cold and silence which felt as heavy as the words Shawn had just spoken. Mina could tell that these words were not easy to say but felt thankful that at least he could be so frank with her. It was obviously a difficult decision for him.

He continued to talk but it almost sounded like he was talking more to himself.

"I always thought if such a decision came my way and we could be together forever I'd be able to drop it all and come running. Now that the moment is here I find myself hesitant. When we were in England we both knew someday you'd be leaving. When I came to Japan we both knew the stay would be short. Mina, you know me better than anybody. Sometimes I think you know me better than I know myself. You are so incredible. Right now I could think of a thousand reasons to want to take the job and stay and you'd be #1 on the list. So why am I so hesitant to take the offer?

She looked into the eyes of the man she loved so much and knew he was speaking from his heart. She wanted to offer him words to make whatever decision easier for him to make.

"Do you want me to take this job?", he finally asked.

She answered the question without hesitation.

"If you ask me that question of course my answer will always be yes. However what I want you to be most is happy, whatever that would mean. If you stayed here that would make me happy. That I won't deny. The bottom line though is that whatever you decide I will support it. Somehow I sense you already know what your answer is"

She reached out her hands to his, holding them tightly. She didn't know which way her words were swaying his heart. The words she had spoken were honest. She did want him to be happy even if it meant a life that wouldn't include her. She gazed lovingly at his face and saw a smile beginning to form. Growing bigger and wider by the second.

"Thank you. I guess I did really know what I wanted to do. I guess I was simply looking for confirmation that I was doing the right thing. I guess after all this time some things haven't changed. I'm still a bit insecure, needing reassurance from time to time. Makes me wonder what someone like you ever saw in someone like me. Whatever it was I'm sure glad you did though."

Mina blushed at the compliment. Tilting her head slightly left she asked the big question.

"So what _**are**_ you going to do?"

He paused for a moment looking almost surprise that she even needed to ask the question.

"Sometime Mina I think you know me better than anybody. Maybe even better than I know myself. You _**must**_ know what I'm feeling right now.'

Without hesitation Mina understood and leaped into his arms holding him tightly. This time knowing that fate has made it possible for them to be together possibly for the rest of their lives. Bringing her lips to his she heard the voices in the auditorium going counting down the final seconds to the old year and the joyous celebration of…..

"HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!"

The new year was starting off well for Mina Aino. She had found her first love…..again.

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**Final Authors Notes: **First of all I hope you enjoy this story. It's been a labor of love for me that began way back in 1999. It saw a lot of changes in my life as I was writing it. For the record and in case any of you are wondering. The Laff Factory was based in general terms on some wonderful performers who I knew in real life. Back then they were called "Comedy Sports of Denver". Now they are known as Impulse Theatre. I found them quite influential. Through them I learned a lot about the art of improvisational comedy which helped me in the writing of the story. For that I would like to thank among other people John "T-Bone' Bowers, "Droolin' Sue Knudsen, Eric "Boom Boom / Mr. Voice" Clawson, Craig "Zero" Zablocki, Jane "Biker Babe" Gibson, DeShawn "Thunder Thigh" Jones, and all the other members whose names are currently eluding me. While the troupe in general was the basis for my Laff Factory I must add that the individual performers in this story are total fictional.


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